A Fine Mess
by my little tangerine
Summary: With Zeke, Harper found she had never truly been herself. She hadn't won that marathon - that was magic. She'd been too scared to ask him to the dance - she needed the help of Max's no fear ring.
1. Those Lucky Dolphins

**Title:** A Fine Mess Inside**  
Author: **my little tangerine**  
Rating:** K+**  
Notes:** Takes place after Wizards vs. Werewolves but contains no spoilers for that episode in this chapter. Most chapters won't be this long, but it was hard to break this into two. Comments, criticism is totally appreciated. My first WOWP fic.

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Harper Finkle's fingers grasped the heavy door to the corner market located down the street from the Waverly Sub Station. It was one thing she loved about living on Waverly Place: the convenience. Everyone she loved, everything she needed was located in one area. Well, minus Tribeca Prep, but it was just a hop, jump and a skip away.

Not literally, of course. Since finding out Alex Russo was a wizard, Harper started clarifying things more frequently. The last thing she wanted was Alex taking something she said literally and doing something crazy, like forcing a horse to drink. (After all, if you tell Alex Russo she can't do something, she's going to prove you wrong by doing it.)

Things had changed a lot since the day she found out. The biggest change was her recent move into the Russo family's abode. Since then, Harper found herself offering to help out more and more around the house. When Teresa realized she had forgotten to pick up ice cream to go with the pie she prepared for after dinner, Harper volunteered to run to the market to pick some up.

It was the least she could do. After all, the Russos had allowed her to move into their basement, not expecting anything in return. They had always been Harper's second family, but she knew they were more than that. They felt more like blood.

As she entered the market, Harper didn't notice the glances and stares at the outfit she wore on this particular day. She was known for her quirky and creative wardrobe, and while she was often criticized by Alex for creating dresses out of objects and accessories out of produce, Harper never let it bother her. She knew her friend meant no harm, and making her own outfits gave her a sense of accomplishment that her snarky, slacker best friend would (hopefully) one day feel.

For a reason other than couch camping, of course.

Today's dress, a bright yellow in color, featured soda bottle caps in a v-neck pattern on the front, exposing a white tank top underneath the fabric to keep her look modest. She had collected enough to decorate the top half of her look, each unique and brightly colored.

Attached to the pleated skirt bottom were plastic soda can rings all the way around, giving the dress a unique texture. The plastic shined when the sunlight caught it just the right way, and Harper was proud of herself for finding a use for materials otherwise thrown into the trash.

Metal can tabs fashioned into earrings, bendable colored drinking straws turned into bangles, and a pair of black and white oxford shoes completed the look. A look she considered quite tame, at least in comparison to some of her more wild outfits.

This one didn't even have a matching headband. Instead, her long red hair was curled and worn down, framing her rosy cheeks. There was a certain level of confidence that wearing an outfit such as this requires, and Harper Finkle had surpassed that level.

She hadn't noticed the random glances, nor did she feel the stare of a box boy as she walked to the ice cream freezer. In fact, it wasn't until he approached the frozen treat display and addressed her by name that she was aware of his presence at all.

"Hey, Harper, I like your dress."

Harper knew the voice as Zeke Beekerman, Justin's best friend and partner-in-crime. They had attended the zombie prom together, and while they had seen each other after that, they had never made plans for another date. She was sure he was busy with his life, and she was certainly busy with hers. The last time she had seen him, after all, was after she competed in a marathon.

The confidence Harper held only moments before was slowly leaving her body. There was something about Zeke that made her nervous.

It was a different kind of nervous than she used to get around Justin. With Justin, Harper had never been dishonest. She was upfront about her home life, her school life and her schemes with Alex.

With Zeke, Harper found she had never truly been herself. She hadn't won that marathon - that was magic. She'd been too scared to ask him to the dance - she needed the help of Max's "no fear ring." Heck, for all she knew, Zeke still thought that she had once dated Justin, when really the oldest Russo had been hit in the butt by Cupid's arrow.

Magic had played a prominent role in Harper's interactions with Zeke, and without magic, Harper wasn't sure how to act. She certainly couldn't explain to him why she behaved oddly. Magic wasn't her secret to tell, after all.

"Oh, hey," she managed to say after a moment, her cheeks warming up as she processed the compliment.

It was an actual compliment, not the kind her brain had to rewire so it became positive instead of negative.

"Thanks," she finally added, her hand raising to brush her hair from her face. Her brown eyes caught his for a brief moment before settling on his excited smile. There was rarely a time when Zeke wasn't happy. "I didn't know you worked here."

"For a few months now," he answered, though he was fully aware that she had not asked a question. He was unaware, however, of the signs of nervousness she was currently displaying. The fidgeting, the blushing, the wide-eyed innocence as she briefly caught his gaze then found the floor again. "Trying to save up for college, you know. It's keeping me busy. Stocking things. Have you seen the cereal aisle? I did that. I mean, not all of it. Just replaced the Frosted Cheerios and the Lucky Charms. They're on sale, did you know that? General Mills products, I mean. Right now they're on sale, you don't even need a coupon."

Zeke Beekerman had been voted "least boring" three years in a row.

He had not earned this title by discussing breakfast cereals.

There was clearly something wrong with him. As he realized this, he quietly muttered words to himself. _Just be cool, Zeke. Talk about something else. There's a sale on toilet paper, too! No! Don't talk to her about toilet paper._

Harper did not understand the whispers exiting Zeke's lips. Not because she couldn't hear them; no, Harper had a good sense of hearing. It was because he was speaking in code, presumably something from the Alien Language League.

She assumed it would be rude to interrupt, so she was waited until he took a long pause before she answered the questions he had asked in English.

"I didn't see the cereal aisle," she replied. "I'm sorry! I can go check it out, if you'd like. I'm sure you did a great job, rotating the older packages to the front so they get sold before they expire."

Zeke's eyes widened. "Yeah, of course I did that."

He hadn't.

"You know a lot about stocking. Have you worked in a grocery store before?"

Harper shook her head, a proud smile displayed upon her lips. Though his words weren't exactly a compliment, they still made her feel good.

"No, but I've had jobs in the past," she answered. "I worked at the Gurt Barn and at the Sub Station for a while. Oh, and the Late Night Bite, too."

Her proud smile soon faded as she remembered how those experiences had gone. She had been awful at the jobs; the only reason she had done so well was because Alex had done a spell.

The Late Night Bite gig, however, had been her own work. It didn't last very long, though, on account of the vampire owners wanting to suck her blood.

"Why'd you stop working there?" Zeke asked curiously.

"Oh, you know. The usual reasons."

Magic had become part of Harper's 'usual.' It was a step up from the slamming doors and arguments she was used to at home, but it still made her uncomfortable.

In fact, the ice cream run was not the only reason she volunteered to go to the market. It was simply a convenient excuse.

Earlier that day, Alex had once again performed magic unsupervised, and she was sure Justin would rat her out before dessert. Maybe, when Harper arrived with vanilla ice cream (and rainbow sprinkles for Max), the punishments will have been dealt and she won't have to be there for the awkwardness.

Zeke simply nodded, assuming 'the usual reasons' made perfect sense. He glanced over his shoulder, noticing his boss approaching. "Can I help you find anything?" he quickly asked the red-haired girl, a charming smile pulling onto his lips.

Harper returned the smile, instead pointing over her shoulder at the clear freezer which had been giving her goosebumps for the last several minutes. "I'm just getting ice cream for the Russos. Alex's mom made pies and who doesn't love it ala mode?"

Harper was unsure if the shiver she felt up her spine was the coolness from the freezer or a rush of confidence.

"You should...I mean, if you're not doing anything...after you get off work, of course...."

She was having difficulty finding the words. The confidence had disappeared. Conveniently, Zeke's manager approached the duo.

"Are you finding everything okay, miss?" he asked, placing a hand on Zeke's shoulder. It was a warning pat, encouraging the young stock boy to get back to work.

"Yes, thank you," she answered with a nod. "I'm just picking out some ice cream, and I was asking this nice, helpful employee who I've never met and certainly never gone to an alternative prom with, um, what kind he recommends."

"The kind with Reese's peanut butter cups in it is my personal favorite," he answered, "but I'd recommend sticking with vanilla for the pie. The ice cream is currently buy two, get one free, if you're interested."

Another pat on his shoulder, and the manager offered Zeke a smile to go with it. "Good job. The beverage aisle needs some work now, if you don't mind."

"Of course not, sir."

Zeke nodded, offering a small wave to the younger girl as his manager walked off.

"Enjoy your ice cream," Zeke told her. "And hey, can you let Justin know I'll be over after work?"

That answered the question she wasn't able to get out: he had plans after work. There was a hint of sadness in her voice as she mumbled, "Sure."

"Thanks. And hey, again, cool dress. Just stay away from any dolphins, they might get caught in your skirt."

Harper's eyebrows raised as she held in a laugh, and Zeke simply turned around and walked off, mumbling Alien swear words under his breath.

It was then, as the laugh escaped, that Harper realized the moment of sadness she felt was unneeded. He had plans, but those plans happened to be at the place she lived.

She opened the freezer, picking out the vanilla ice cream he suggested, a carton of cookies n creme for her and Alex to enjoy during one of their girl talks, and the kind with the Reese's - just in case.


	2. Charisma Check

_A/N: There was a lot of Harper in the first chapter, so I decide to reward you with some Zeke this time around. This takes place that night, obviously. Please review, even if it's just to say that you don't totally hate it. ;) (Unless you do totally hate it, then you can say that....)_

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Things had been somber around the Russo household since Alex and Justin broke up with Mason and Juliet. Zeke didn't know the details, nor did he want to pry. Justin had just said that they had grown apart – that the age difference was finally catching up to them.

Zeke thought the couple was perfect for each other. Sure, Justin had less time for Zeke when he was dating the pretty blonde girl, but sometimes dudes have to let their best friends be happy with someone else for a change.

It was part of some bro code; right up there with "Thou shall not date your best friend's ex."

Lately, Zeke felt more and more awkward obeying that part of the code.

If there was one way to describe Zeke Beekerman, however, it was fiercely loyal. Whenever Justin needed him, Zeke would drop anything to be there. He learned early on in his life that nerds have to take care of each other.

If you could find someone else who liked Dungeons & Gargoyles and speaking alien languages, you had to hold on tight to them.

With Justin heartbroken, Zeke had taken the role of the cleric, attempting to heal his best friend's sadness. It didn't matter if that meant hanging out more after classes, going to see "Sherlock Holmes" four times or just texting him photos of his favorite weather girl for an afternoon pick-me-up.

Today's surprise was a new 20-sided die he'd found online.

Earlier that year Justin purchased a set of dice, but Alex had stolen the d20 from the set when her older brother wasn't looking. Without it, the set was practically useless. How else would he attack the kobolds and gelatinous cubes lurking in the dungeon? Sure, he had other d20s, but he liked his dice to match.

It took a while for Zeke to find a matching die – he had to call in a few favors – but he was proud of the score.

Theresa and Harper were closing the sub shop when Zeke entered after his shift at the grocery store ended.

"Hey Zeke," Theresa greeted as she placed a chair upside down on one of the many tables. Harper jumped at the mention of his name, hands spilling some of the salt she was using to refill the shakers. She said nothing, however, instead going back to steadying the containers.

Zeke had been there at closing time before so, as if by habit, he turned the sign to "closed" and locked the door behind him. His lanky body glided over the floor, arms reaching out to help Theresa with the chairs.

"You don't have to do that, Zeke," Theresa said, a smile on her face as she glanced toward Harper then back to Zeke. While two of her children were heartbroken (and the other seemingly clueless as usual), their best friends had come through for them in ways she, as a parent, could not. "Justin is upstairs."

"It's no trouble, Mrs. Russo," he replied as he placed another chair on top of the table. "I'll finish up here, if you'd like."

"Well, thank you," she answered, a bit shocked at the offer. "Are you hungry? We have plenty of leftovers from dinner. I could warm some up for you."

"That'd be fantastic, Mrs. Russo. Thank you." He had already finished the chairs, moving to pick up the broom that rested against the counter.

With that, Theresa excused herself and climbed up the spiral staircase.

The teens in the sub shop were quiet, one sweeping and one allowing her thoughts to roam as she filled salt shakers. Things had ended on a good note at the grocery store, in her opinion, so she wasn't about to talk and ruin it.

It was a lesson she had learned after years of crushing on Justin. When she finally stopped her obsession and became friends with him, she found their relationship had improved.

Sure, she still had jealous tendencies, but things had changed so much in the past few weeks that Harper was left unsure of where her own feelings rested.

Her thoughts were interrupted as Zeke emptied the dustbin in the trashcan and addressed the red-haired girl.

"Hey, Harper?"

Salt everywhere. Again. This time on the floor.

Zeke may not have noticed the cause for jumpiness, but he did notice the mess that remained. He moved over with the broom, continuing to speak without waiting for an answer.

"Can I ask you a favor?"

"Do you want me to finish sweeping? I made the mess, I'm sorry. I can clean it up. You should go hang out with Justin." Harper had a habit of speaking quickly when nervous. At least she hadn't hit the awkward and loud laughter stage yet.

"It's not that," Zeke insisted, continuing to work. "You're good at, like, designing and painting stuff, right?"

It wasn't a question that needed answering – he knew, and she knew that. Still, she replied with a quiet 'yeah' before clearing her throat. "I mean, yeah," she followed up louder, just in case he hadn't heard.

"Do you think you could help me with something? It's for a gift."

"For your girlfriend?" she asked quickly, raising her eyebrows. Why did she say that? She didn't mean to say that. It just popped out, just as her hands suddenly began moving again, screwing the lids back onto salt shakers.

Her brain officially lost control of her actions.

Zeke, however, stopped in place. He didn't detect the jealous tone, but rather jumped to a conclusion he had heard from people before.

"Are you implying that Justin is my girlfriend? Because I'm getting really sick of that. I mean, you bring a dude flowers once and all of a sudden…." He was rambling, and while Harper wanted to laugh, she instead reacted with words.

"I wasn't implying that!" she insisted. "I wouldn't say – wait, you brought him flowers? Why would you…No, never mind."

The quiet returned, Zeke moving to empty the dustpan and Harper finishing the salt shakers. She placed the tray beneath the counter, and then moved closer to Zeke, hoping to ease his discomfort and make amends for the misunderstanding.

"What do you need help with?" Hands rested on her hips, Harper tilted her head as she glanced up to him. Their eyes met, but only briefly. Footsteps on the stairs caught their attention, and Zeke quickly turned to see Justin.

"Your food's warm, Zeke," he told him, hand gently hitting the rail, causing a sound to echo in the new silence. "Hurry up. If it gets cold again you have to reheat it again, which is another dose of radiation."

"But I could end up with super powers that way," Zeke pointed out, picking up the broom and aiming the handle at Justin. He mimicked a laser shot sound, and as if on cue, Justin placed a hand to his chest, falling back onto the stairs in mock-agony.

They'd done this before.

Zeke turned his attention back to Harper, but before he could speak, Harper took the broom from his hand.

"Go eat," she said. "This is almost finished. We'll talk later?"

Zeke nodded, taking a slight bow and tipping an invisible hat in her direction. "Thank you, ma'am," he replied. It was calm, cool and collected. Completely out of character, of course, which is why seconds later he jumped into the air, threw up a fist pump and clambered onto the stairs where Justin had stood waiting. "Let's food up, Robot!"

As the duo ran upstairs, Harper leaned on the broom, a hand rising to cover her face. Today had been exhausting, not to mention slightly confusing, but there was a flicker of hope burning.

And for Harper Finkle, even the tiniest flame could keep her warm for hours.


	3. Dick Van Dyke is a Robot

_A/N: Thanks to everyone who is reading, signing up for alerts and leaving reviews. I truly appreciate it, and I hope you enjoy.  
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"Harper, what the heck is wrong with you?"

Alex Russo poked her friend in the arm with her index finger, the other hand firmly holding onto bowl of cereal she was eating. The words came muffled through a full mouth of Cap'n Crunch. Harper could never figure out how her best friend managed to stay so skinny after eating so much and so often, but she assumed it was magic.

"What are you talking about?" Harper asked, sliding away to avoid another poke (and potential spit residue with Alex's response). The best friends sat on the couch; Alex with her feet on the table, Harper's curled beneath her body. The duo had a habit of staying up late on the weekends, watching bad movies, playing games or just enjoying each other's company.

Harper would lend Alex her shoulder when she needed it, whether the topic was boys, school or the wizard's concerns with magic lessons. Though Harper had limited knowledge on those topics, she offered her best advice to her bestie – knowing, of course, that she probably wouldn't take it. At the very least she knew Alex appreciated the concern, and that was enough for Harper.

"You're totally zoned out and not listening to my heartwarming story," Alex replied, brushing strands of hair from her face before shoveling another spoonful of cereal into her mouth. She placed the bowl - now only full of milk – onto the table, abandoning it once and for all. "You haven't even answered me for, like, 10 minutes."

Had Harper really zoned out? Sure, she'd been thinking about Zeke again, but she couldn't have acted like such a space case for so long.

In fact, she was sure she hadn't.

"Alex, what are you talking about?" Harper replied, eyes wide in amusement as she pointed an accusatory finger at the Russo girl. "You weren't telling a heartwarming story. You were making up your own words to this telenovela!" She motioned to the screen, where a couple's romantic moment had just been interrupted by a man with a curly mustache. "You said, 'Oh, Armando! Why can't you grow facial hair like Raúl?'"

Harper raised her pitch, mimicking both the character and Alex's impressions in one go.

"To which I replied," Harper lowered her voice to a growl, "'When will you stop growing facial hair, Esmeralda?'"

Alex let out a loud laugh, pointing at the screen in amusement. "That chick totally has a mustache, you're right." She crossed her arms, shaking her head as she allowed herself to sink comfortably into the couch. "Hi-def is not treating her well."

Safe from Alex Russo cereal spit, Harper slid back over toward her friend.

"I said that like a minute ago, Alex," she told her, though she couldn't help but laugh at both their game and her friend's confusion. "Why would you say I wasn't listening?"

"You had that look in your eyes like you were thinking about something else," Alex responded, waving a hand in front of her own brown eyes as if to demonstrate 'that look.' "And you totally were, even if you won't admit it."

"No, I was," she replied simply.

"Don't lie!" Alex said instantly, her brain not even registering what was said. It sunk in quickly. "Wait, what? Then what was it?"

Harper was hesitant to answer. She assumed the last thing Alex wanted to talk to was boys, especially since the last time Harper pointed out a cute guy Alex went on a rant about how 'Sure, guys are cute, but only until they turn into a werewolf and get in a fight with a vampire.' Harper hadn't watched "Diagnosis Murder" since, though she was almost positive Dick Van Dyke wasn't a werewolf.

However, Harper knew she had to answer. Alex was giving her that look – the kind of look that just made her feel guilty and caused her to tell her everything, even if she didn't want to.

"It's guy stuff," she warned, offering her friend a sympathetic smile. "I just…I don't know. How are you supposed to tell if a guy is into you?"

Even if her own love life was rocky, Alex was more than happy for her best friend if she found a guy to crush on. As long as it wasn't her brother, of course.

"If it's Justin, I'll save you the trouble - he's not," Alex answered, laughing at her own joke before noticing the glare she was receiving. "Sorry, sorry. Who is it?"

"It's no one. It's hypothetical."

Alex knew better than to believe that. Rather than pry, she took a moment to run through a list of guys they both knew, cross-referencing it with ones Harper acted awkward around. Her brain was like a catalog of boy knowledge thanks to TV shows and teen magazines.

"I'm gonna tell Zeke you think he's hypothetical, whatever that means," Alex finally said.

Sure, Alex knew she used to like Zeke, but Harper was honestly surprised her best friend had remembered that tidbit of information. At the same time, Harper knew better than to underestimate Alex, and it really wasn't the worst thing in the world if she knew her feelings still remained.

"Okay, I like Zeke," Harper replied after a moment, but quickly turned to point an accusatory finger at Alex. "But don't tell him, Alex. I'm serious. And don't do magic! And…and…" She was running out of things to order. "Take your feet off the table! People eat from there!"

Alex just laughed – of course she wasn't going to tell, nor was she going to remove her feet. Her arms reached out toward her friend, pulling her into a side hug. "Oh, Armando," Alex mumbled through her laughter. "You know I'll be here for you, right? If you need anything?"

"Of course, Esmeralda," Harper replied as she rested her head upon her shoulder. "Just stick by my side and everything will be fine."

"I promise."

The sound of footsteps traveled down the stairs, and Alex turned to see Zeke standing there with his overnight bag. "Hey Alex, hey Harper," he said cautiously, not sure what moment he was interrupting. Perhaps girls always hug while watching telenovelas – he knew nothing about women.

"Zeke, hello!" Alex quickly stood up, causing Harper to fall onto the couch. "I was just going to bed! Good night!"

Harper stood up as quickly as she fell, her hands brushing her hair out of her face as she sighed. "Alex, it's still early." She glanced at the clock, shaking her head as her best friend moved toward the stairs. "You haven't even eaten your second dinner yet."

"That's true," Alex realized, changing courses to head to the refrigerator. She pulled out a tiny take-out box – who knew what was in it or whose it was – then moved toward the stairs once more. "Can't forget second dinner. How else will I avoid the sleep-munchies? Thanks, Harper. G'night!"

Harper let out another sigh, though it quickly turned into a quiet, nervous laugh as she sat back down on the couch.

She was going to kill Esmeralda for this.


	4. Color Safe Bleach

_Thanks for the kind words and what-not. Hope you enjoy._

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Zeke carried his bag over to the couch, placing it onto the floor next to him before taking a seat next to Harper. He wasn't directly next to her – he made sure to give her plenty of space. Girls may cuddle during Spanish language soap operas, but strictly-platonic-to-avoid-breaking-bro-code-and-because-who-even-knows-if-she-digs-him-and-why-would-she friends? He was pretty sure they sat further apart.

"Hey, I think I've seen this one," Zeke said, pointing to the screen before glancing over to Harper. She looked absolutely fascinated by the characters' movements, and, if only for a moment, Zeke was happier watching her watch TV than watching TV himself.

That was, of course, until Armando and Raul started wrestling, crashing into a table with a loud 'thud!' That was his favorite part.

"Do you speak Spanish?" Harper asked after a moment, able to calm her nerves enough to ask a question. She could do this. She was Harper Finkle. She could fake the confidence of a hundred super models under the right conditions.

"I speak a lot of languages," he answered, puffing up his chest proudly. This transitioned into him slumping his shoulders, a nervous laugh – almost a giggle – as his hand reached up to scratch at the back of his head. "Um, Spanish isn't one of them, so no. I mean, not fluently."

Harper nodded, a smile pulling onto her lips and a twinkle shining in her eyes. He was amusing, even if he didn't know it. "So, what are you doing here? Not here as in this Earth, because I get that, and not here as in this house, because obviously you're staying the night with Justin, but here like this couch. I assumed you'd be sleeping in Justin's room? Not that I had any thoughts about where you'd be sleeping."

Zeke didn't think anything of her rambling – he had been known to use a word or four extra to ask a simple question.

"I was going to sleep on the air mattress I usually crash on, but apparently Max popped it last week," he replied, following it up with a whistling sound to mimic the sound of air escaping. "Mrs. Russo was nice enough to bring a blanket and pillow down here for me so I could crash on the couch." He motioned to the chair where the sleeping supplies were, a "Sweet dreams, Zeke" post-it note resting on top.

"Not sure how I missed that…." Harper mumbled, and suddenly a realization hit her.

She was sitting on Zeke Beekerman's bed. Sure, a minute ago she was fine and comfortable and obeying all boy-in-the-house rules provided by her second family, but now? Now she was crossing into dangerous territory. She moved to the edge of the couch, hands folded in her lap as she chewed on her lip.

"You know, if we were on TV back in the day we'd have to keep at least one foot on the floor at all times," she told him, then glanced at his feet. Both were on the floor. Hers were, too. They were in the clear.

As she glanced away, she noticed Alex's milk bowl sitting on the table. This was like Zeke's nightstand, if the couch was his bed, and there was a mess in it! What kind of hosts were they, to leave a mess?

"I'm sorry about this," she said quickly, standing up to grab the bowl.

It took Zeke a few minutes to realize what Harper was sorry for. He was still focusing on the foot thing, his eyes glancing at the black house slippers he was currently wearing. Sometimes Harper was a bit difficult to keep up with. As quickly as his mind went, hers went twice that speed.

His eyes followed her into the kitchen, squinting as he examined her every movement. Sure, she was just washing a dish, but it seemed like there was something different about her. Zeke stood up in a swift motion, gliding across the living room and into the kitchen.

"You don't have to wash that," Zeke insisted, elbow bumping against hers as he attempted to relieve her from dish duty.

"It's no problem," she replied quickly, eyes glancing up toward him. "I'm used to cleaning up after Alex." A pause, as Harper found herself getting nervous once again. He was still standing right there, in what Alex referred to as her 'kiss or clobber' radius. Harper was certainly not going to do either of those things to Zeke, at least not anytime soon. She had to think quickly.

"We have ice cream, if you want some," she said, tilting her head to motion toward the freezer. "I mean, obviously there's ice cream. You helped me pick it out." It was only slight babbling. A definite improvement, right? "I loved your little vest, by the way. I don't know if I told you that but I thought it, so I just thought I'd…tell you."

Shaking her head, Harper placed the clean bowl in the drainer. Zeke had already gotten the ice cream from the freezer and placed it on the counter, a smile forming on his lips as he realized she'd gotten his favorite. "Thanks," he replied, opening the cabinet to grab clean dishware. "Do you want some?" She nodded, and so he grabbed two. "The vest is kind of dorky, but it's green so it's not so awful. It'd be cooler if you'd trick it out."

"Do you want me to?" she asked, pulling spoons from the drawer and handing one to Zeke. She would later look back on this moment as one of perfection – she spoke comfortably and at a normal pace, and upon reflection she would acknowledge that his fingertips brushed hers as the utensil passed between them.

"I don't think my boss would dig that, but I appreciate the offer."

Zeke handed Harper her bowl of ice cream, motioning for her to walk first to wherever she would like to sit down. Since Zeke's pillow and blanket were technically not on the couch yet, she decided the room was still a living room and not a bedroom. She was overreacting before.

Of course, she was still going to keep her feet on the floor.

As she sat on the couch, using her spoon to stab chunks of peanut butter cup, Zeke's eyes carefully watched her. Something was driving him absolutely nuts. He knew there was something different about her, and it wasn't just that she looked adorable digging the chunks out. He did that, too, though he was sure that ice cream mining was not as cute when he did it.

After a moment it finally hit him. Instead of the usual out-there outfits she wore, Harper was dressed down. Green plaid pajama pants and a plain gray T-shirt, no jewels or sparkles or trash attached.

"Who knew that the fashion forward Harper Finkle dressed like us common folk at nighttime?" he asked, and he was almost positive he noticed her cheeks flush. "It's strange to see you in normal clothes. Not a bad strange," he insisted quickly. "And not that your clothes aren't normal. You know what I mean, right?"

He sure hoped so, because he really didn't want to try to explain it any further.

"I know," she promised, fingers tugging at the T-shirt before moving to brush her curled hair from her face. She knew her cheeks were red, but her hair wouldn't hide that fact. "Mrs. Russo thought I should own some clothes that were washer and dryer safe. I have to admit it's much more convenient this way."

"Props to Mrs. Russo," Zeke acknowledged, placing his bowl on the table. He then slowly reached his hand out toward Harper's shoulder. "May I?" She didn't seem to flinch away, so his fingers tugged gently on the back of her shirt, his other hand brushing her hair away so he could read the tag. "Machine wash cold with like colors, tumble dry."

This was probably the weirdest thing anyone had ever done, Harper decided in that moment, and this was coming from the girl who once made a sweater out of her own hair. At the same time, there was an odd comfort in his actions, and she wasn't as nervous or awkward as she had once been. Once a guy reads your laundry instructions, what do you really have to be nervous about?

He pulled back slowly, fingers brushing gently against the back of her neck. After a moment he gripped the back of his shirt. "What's mine say?" he asked her, grinning as he leaned toward her. With a laugh, Harper reached out and read the tag.

"Same thing," she answered, gently patting his back before pulling away.

"Well how about that," Zeke said as-a-matter-of-factly. "We're laundry buddies. High five?"

Harper granted him the requested high five, and when she would think back on this moment in bed later that night, she'd remember the spark she felt as her much smaller hand gently smacked against his.

She was sure the butterflies in her stomach and the grin on her face weren't going to disappear, just as sure as she was that she never wanted to wash the plain gray T-shirt he seemed so interested in.


	5. Salt & Pepper Make Sense

Alex Russo was bored. She'd only been home for 53 minutes but already she wished she was somewhere else. Harper had…something after school. She honestly couldn't remember what. She knew it wasn't cheerleading, because she would have been forced to go. Scrapbooking? Some sort of studying and/or project that Alex probably should be doing but wasn't?

It didn't matter where she was, Alex decided, rubbing her forehead. Thinking actually did hurt sometimes. The point was, Harper wasn't there to entertain her, so she'd been left to her own devices for 53 – no, 54 – whole minutes.

Half a sugar container later, Alex Russo was wired. So, when Harper _did_ enter the Sub Station, exactly 1 hour and 13 minutes after Alex did, the young wizard jumped to her feet.

"Harper! Thank God!"

Harper's eyes widened, hands gripping her backpack straps as she took a step backward. Sugar or magic? Her eyes quickly surveyed the area before landing on sugar. "Oh, Alex," she replied, picking up the half-empty (or half-full, for the optimists) container. "You know, I don't understand why you even _have_ sugar here. What on the menu, besides coffee or tea, would you need sugar for?"

The question had plagued her for as long as she could remember, but asking Alex was probably not the way to find out the answer.

"What are you talking about?" Alex asked, eyebrows rising in amusement. "Sugar can go on everything. And you're supposed to be smart, pfft."

Harper just laughed, placing the sugar back onto the table. "What was I thinking?" she asked, rolling her eyes and walking through the restaurant to go to her basement room.

Alex's eyes had followed the sugar the entire time, and she poured and devoured another handful before following her best friend. When she reached Harper's room, Harper had already sat down at her craft table.

Zeke had approached her asking for help, and of course she was going to assist him in whatever way she could. She thought, of course, he would be around more, but so far it had been a solo project.

The senior duo was starting a new Dungeons and Gargoyles campaign, Zeke had explained. While they had plenty of miniatures, Zeke thought it'd be neat to give Justin a custom-painted one to accurately depict the character. He'd given Harper all of the necessary information, but really, Harper knew what she needed to do. She had Justin Russo's face memorized.

"C'mon, Harper!" Alex shouted, fingers picking at pieces of fabric in an effort to keep her entertained. "Let's go do something! Let's go place fake bids on Justin's auctions so he'll get all excited then be crushed when no one sends him money for his lame dolls."

"We did that last week," Harper replied, eyes scanning over the character sheet in front of her. "By 'we' I mean 'you,' of course."

"Yeah, that was pretty funny." Alex giggled, picking up a random hat and placing it on top of her dark curly hair. It was surprisingly normal and totally something she'd wear, so she chose to leave it on as she continued to poke around at Harper's belongings. It was like shoplifting, but from a basement and also a friend so not technically illegal. "You totally ruined it, though, by paying for it and having it shipped to Nellie. What are you going to do with it?"

Harper shrugged. She didn't want to kick Justin when he was down, so she felt morally obligated to purchase what Alex bid on. "I don't know. We could leave it somewhere so he thinks it came back to him on his own."

"Not devious, but it might confuse him for a while which could be fun. Sounds like a plan. Let's do it. Not now, though. Tomorrow. Now we should go somewhere. Let's go to the movies just to get popcorn, then come back here and watch a movie on TV instead."

The sugar had fully kicked in, and Alex was itching to do something. Anything. Standing in Harper's basement with food-dresses and headless mannequins for too long was creeping her out, and her interest in what Harper was working on was low-to-moderate at best.

Harper shook her head, motioning to the table of crafts ready for her to play with. "I'm busy, Alex. I need to work on this."

Alex groaned, stomping her sneakers on the ground. "Again? Ugh, c'mon! You've been working on that stupid thing for, like, three weeks! How are you not finished yet?"

"It's been four days," Harper answered quickly, eyes wide. "Alex, seriously, I am making you a calendar."

Alex waved her arm at the idea, and then picked up an apple sitting on the table, throwing it into the air and catching it as it fell. "Don't bother," she said, frowning when she missed and the apple fell to the ground. She kicked it to the side, focusing on Harper once again. "I still have the one you made me last week."

Harper didn't even bother looking up from her paper as she corrected Alex's timeline.

"That was two years ago for your birthday."

Alex wasn't listening; she now started picking up the actual crafts on the table, finding Justin's miniature. It did look a lot like him – if he was some adventurer, of course, and not a dorky mathlete or whatever he was into this week.

"Harper, this is done! Why are we even here and not gallivanting around town causing mischief and mayhem if you've finished the mini-dweeb?"

"Gallivanting? Mischief and mayhem?" Harper repeated. Alex was in fine form today, Harper realized, and that meant there was no shaking her. She put the character sheet down, taking the mini-Justin from her best friend. "I finished his yesterday. I kind of started working on one for Zeke. I stole his character sheet from Justin's room so I could make it. It's a surprise."

It was such a cute and romantic gesture that it almost made Alex want to vomit. Luckily, Harper had mentioned her favorite pastime, and that had pushed away all puke-urges.

"You stole from Justin's room? Aww, Harper! Why didn't you invite me?" Alex sat down in the chair next to Harper's, pulling her friend into a tight hug. "I'm so proud of you."

"Technically I made a copy, and then returned it to the exact location with no visible changes."

Harper Finkle didn't have the devious tendencies that she had, but Alex was still proud of what she'd confessed.

"Baby steps! Next time you'll leave a fingerprint on whatever you take, then soon after you won't return it at all," Alex explained.

Harper didn't really want to discuss her thievery, so she quickly changed the subject. She lifted the miniature she'd been working from its spot on the table, showing it to Alex. She didn't hand it to her, of course. She was protective of the tiny figurine. "Do you think he'll like it?"

Alex shrugged. "Sure, why not? I mean, compared to 'hair sweater' it's totally normal."

"Why does everyone bring that up?" Harper still didn't understand what was so weird about making a sweater from her hair. It was soft, it was a nice color and it kept Justin warm – it was everything a sweater should be.

"Dude, it was a sweater made out of your hair. You can't do stuff like that and expect people to _not_ talk about it." Alex waved her hand before pushing herself up from the table. "C'mon, let's go do stuff. Finish his figure-ma-jig later. We can go bug Justin. You used to jump at the chance to talk to Justin. You're so weird now that you _don't_ like my brother."

Harper knew she had to give in. As much as she wanted to continue perfecting the figure – and talking to the mini-Zeke was good practice for the real one – she knew Alex wouldn't leave her alone, and working with the Russo in the room meant destruction or mistakes. It'd have to be a 'later' project, when Alex had wizard stuff or crashed from the sugar. Then she could give Zeke the attention he deserved, even if he didn't know it yet.


	6. Little Hallmark Moments

Harper Finkle had finished Zeke's figurine a few days before, but her nerves had gotten the best of her every time she even considered presenting him with the gifts.

She wasn't worried about the mini-Justin. She knew it was exactly what Zeke had wanted it to be, and she was 100 percent sure the older males would be excited over it. But the surprise gift? That one made Harper's stomach twist into knots.

After all, it's not like they were dating. If they were dating it'd be perfectly okay to do something like that. Harper was afraid it would be considered creepy, or that Zeke would realize she had memorized the details of his face, right down to mixing the perfect paint color for his piercing eyes.

She got chills just thinking about it. Of course, the chills could have come from the water fountain she was leaning next to. It'd started shaking as it cooled the tap water down on schedule. She knew exactly when Zeke would stop at this water fountain – 15 minutes after classes let out for the day, after he'd met up with Justin, gotten his bag out of his locker and exchanged pleasantries with his favorite librarian.

This was just his Tuesday schedule. Harper knew the other days of the week, too, and they all included a stop at this water fountain. Usually Harper would hover near it, then if she _happened_ to see Zeke she would say hello, ask how his day was, then offer a kind "see you later!" and rush off to replay the conversation over and over again.

Today, however, she was going to be bold. She was making it clear that she was waiting for him. Heck, all she needed was to hold a sign up with his name like people do at airports. (Alex, however, told her that wouldn't be the best idea, so she'd left the glittery masterpiece at home.)

Zeke turned down the hallway, approaching his favorite water fountain and last stop of the day before he had to tackle homework and hang out with Justin. It was his favorite part of the day because lately Harper's schedule had been colliding with his. He assumed it was the universe working in his favor, but, at the same time, it had gotten harder and harder to view her as simply a friend.

In fact, two days before he had decided to talk to Justin about it. Then he chickened out and decided to reschedule that talk. Maybe after Harper finished the project Justin would be in a better mood and he would approve of Zeke asking Harper out on a real date.

Or Justin would realize how amazing Harper was for painting the miniature, then his feelings would come back and they would get back together and Zeke would be alone.

Those thoughts flew out of Zeke's mind as fast as they had appeared when he saw Harper leaning next to the fountain. She had unveiled a new outfit today, he realized, ecstatic to peek a closer look and to compliment her on the creative endeavor.

When he reached the fountain, his lanky body bent over to take a sip, while his eyes scanned the materials used on her dress. The skirt, draping just above her knees, was fashioned with a collage of greeting card covers, from smiling children and happy animals to cartoons and painted pictures. The white bodice was made of the inside parts – the "thinking of you!" and "happy birthday!" sentiments pieced together to fit her curves. Red ribbons made spaghetti straps, almost blending in with her straightened hair.

Zeke didn't realize he'd been staring instead of swallowing until water started dribbling down his chin. He quickly stood up, wiping the water away and offering the biggest, cheesiest smile he could.

"I like the outfit," he said, watching as Harper's cheeks turned pink. "Greeting cards don't look good on many people but you really pull it off."

Harper smiled, mumbling a quiet 'thank you' before holding up her hands. She held a tiny gift box, a giant tag attached with Zeke's name scrawled on it. "I finished the gift," she declared proudly. "For Justin."

He quickly took the box, leading her over to a bench so they could sit down and open it. His eyes went directly to Justin's miniature. Picking it up with his jaw dropped as he studied the details and effort she put into it.

"Harper, this is amazing," he told her. "So much better than the store bought ones, too. Thank you for doing this." He carefully placed the item back in the box, only to notice the miniature he had missed at first glance. "What's this?"

Harper had to think about her answer. She easily could have spat out 'It's my way of telling you I have a major crush on you!' but it didn't seem very subtle or cool. A smile tugged at the corner of her mouth as she made eye contact with him.

"I just figured Justin shouldn't be the only one with one," she answered, watching as he studied the tiny version of him.

He didn't know what to say. Any thoughts he had were turned to mush, any words that had formed were now caught in his throat, and his heart was pounding on his chest so loud he was sure Harper could hear it.

His eyes fell to her stomach, reaching a finger out and poking her gently. At first Harper was confused – what kind of response is that? Who pokes someone after they receive a present? But as she glanced down at his finger, she noticed his fingertip rested on a thank you card.

She had to laugh. It was so random and adorable, and soon he was laughing with her.

He wanted to hug her and never let go, but settled for placing an arm around her shoulder and giving her a gentle half-hug. "Thanks," he said between laughs. "Hey, do you want me to walk you home? We could stop for smoothies or something. My treat. As, you know, a thank you."

The words didn't register in Harper's mind at first. She was concentrating on turning her cheeks and the tips of her ears from pink to their normal color. It wasn't an easy task, of course, and she was pretty sure, despite all of her effort, that she had failed.

"That sounds…good," she answered, flashing him a smile and standing up. She pulled on her sweater and held tightly onto the straps of her backpack. "Are you sure you have time? Don't you have work or Justin time or Alien Language League?"

Usually, when Alex or Harper referenced ALL, it was with a mocking sort of tone. Of course, everything Alex said kind of had that tone, but even Harper joined in on teasing the older boys sometimes.

However, when Harper mentioned it now, Zeke noticed no teasing in her voice. It was just a pleasant question from a pretty girl.

"I have plenty of time for you," he promised. "No work, and the League is meeting tomorrow. And if I walk you home, I'll be at Justin's home so I'm exactly where I need to be. You know, this situation is very convenient for me."

Harper smiled. Right now she felt like she was exactly where she needed to be, and while she wanted to read more into his words, she saved it. No need to ruin a perfect moment with over-thinking, especially when a cute boy was offering to buy her a smoothie.


	7. And a Gold Star, Too

If this was a date, Harper Finkle would be freaking out.

In fact, she was sure Alex, when told about this after school event, would call it a date. The facts were these: Zeke asked her to the smoothie place, offered to pay, held the door open for her and had successfully ordered for her.

Technically he had suggested getting the strawberry-banana flavor, as it was his favorite and she "seems like the type to appreciate a good strawnana." Harper, of course, agreed to get his suggestion. She would consume a dirt and worm smoothie if Zeke Beekerman had told her it was good (but she was really glad that he didn't).

Then, when they went to sit down, Zeke pulled out a chair for her.

All of these were signs of a date. Harper read the teen magazines – she knew. But, because he never used the actual word date, she was able to stay calm and not spill her smoothie or let it dribble down her chin.

Zeke, on the other hand, had been a victim of the latter. It was the second time that day he'd had liquids dripping from his face. He had quickly grabbed a napkin and wiped, praying she hadn't noticed.

She had, but she pretended that she didn't. Instead she continued her story about her greeting card dress. He had been so enthusiastic about it, asking where she got the cards and how long it took her to make it.

"I had so many cards that were just sitting around in boxes, you know?" She took a sip of her smoothie, noting that she was almost finished with it. He had been right – she did appreciate a good strawnana. "I never throw anything away if I can help it. You know, I still have so many old school assignments that I think could make some killer accessories."

Zeke grinned, fingers scratching at the back of his head as he spoke. "Would you make me a hat out of your A-plus papers?" he questioned, raising a brow. Was he flirting? He didn't mean to flirt, nor did he know how to flirt, so he chalked it up to just being nice. Besides, he liked hats and he liked good grades, so he was simply sharing a common interest.

"I don't know about that," she replied, moving the straw around with her finger as she spoke. She finished the smoothie, so now the cup and straw were just playthings. If her nervous energy had somewhere to go, her brain could properly respond and be charming and clever. The magazines always say to be charming and clever. "Maybe the A-minuses. I don't know if you've earned the pluses yet."

Zeke's hand moved to his chest as he pretended to be shocked. He was an amazing actor, after all, so he had no trouble displaying this basic emotion. "What's a guy gotta do to earn the pluses, huh?" Noticing her empty cup (and realizing he had finished his moments before), Zeke reached a hand out, fingers grasping the cup and casually brushing against her fingertips. "How about I take your trash? Where will that get me?"

Was he flirting? Harper didn't know much about flirting. All she knew was that her heart was pounding, her cheeks were flushed and she was memorizing every line to write in her journal. She may even write to the teen magazines with this one, or save it for a novel or screenplay.

"Um…that, I…." Deep breath in, she thought to herself, and then slowly let it out. She had to play it cool. For a second she almost wished she had magical help, until she remembered how amazing the butterflies felt. When she was fearless she felt almost nothing. She asked him out, told him he was cute and had no problems standing close to him.

But now? Now the slightest touch sent the blood rushing. This was more magical than anything she'd ever experienced.

"I think it could bump you up to a solid A," she finally mumbled, slowly pulling her hand away. He did the same, flashing a quick smile in her direction before standing up. They both gathered their bags, Harper following him to the trash can.

"That was a pretty easy A," Zeke noted, waving a hand to let her walk in front of him through the crowded restaurant. "I think you're grading on a curve."

Harper let out a genuine laugh at his nerd humor, glancing back to share another giggling moment. When she did, she didn't notice the boy with the blueberry smoothie coming right toward her.

It was like a scene from a movie, everything going in slow motion. Zeke shouted for them to watch out, and Harper let out a shriek as the cold beverage hit her skin, dripping down her dress and onto the floor. Everyone around was silent except for the smoothie owner. That laugh was a laugh she recognized.

"MacGruder," she mumbled, locking eyes with her art nemesis. Under normal circumstances she would retaliate, or yell, or accuse him of doing this on purpose. After all, Harper Finkle was undefeated in Mr. Laritate's art-off competitions thanks to the power of kittens.

But when she noticed the amount of blue liquid dripping down her dress, and felt the chills of being doused with cold beverage, all she could do was stand there. Tears began filling her eyes as MacGruder walked off, complaining that he'd have to buy a new smoothie. She thought she heard Zeke yell something after him but she couldn't be sure.

The dress she had worked so hard on. The cards she had saved from important occasions in her life – sometimes the only gift she received from her parents, but she always understood – so many of them were now stained, making the dress sticky and unwearable.

She didn't want to blink. She didn't want to start crying. It wasn't until she felt Zeke's hand touch her shoulder that she finally gave in. He leaned toward her, whispering what she thought was comforting words. She couldn't make them out. He then reached into his backpack, pulling out his cheerleading pants and a gold T-shirt.

"Go change," he mumbled as he handed them to her, head motioning toward the bathroom. "I'll wait for you. I don't want you to be cold and sticky." As she took the clothes he brought his fingers up to her cheek, gently wiping the few tears which had fallen.

Before she could even change into the clothes she was sure would be too big for her, Harper had to ask him one question. Her wet eyes locked with his, a hint of a smile pulling onto her lips.

"Why do you have these?" she asked, holding up the partial uniform. They had been banned from games which meant the team hadn't been practicing. Even if they had, Tuesday wasn't a practice day. It made no sense for him to carry around his uniform.

"The same reason I have tap shoes in my locker," he answered, acting as if it was the most obvious answer in the world. She didn't look like she understood what he was saying, so he explained further. "In case of emergencies."

While she still looked completely heartbroken, Zeke saw a flash of amusement in her eyes. She nodded, heading into the bathroom, leaving him to wait outside.

The moment he had seen tears start to form was the moment he started internally freaking out. Sure, he played it cool with her, but he honestly didn't know how to deal with girl tears. The closest he had been through was Justin tears – he wasn't allowed to speak of that moment, though, so he mentally made a note to ask anyone currently reading his thoughts to not discuss that incident with anyone.

He knew he had to busy himself while he waited, so he grabbed napkins to begin cleaning up the mess. He couldn't begin to imagine how upset Harper was. He knew how long she had worked on that dress, and he knew the staining power of blue beverages.

He tossed the napkins into the trash, requested a plastic bag to store Harper's sticky dress in, then pulled his personalized Tribeca Prep Turkeys senior hoodie from his backpack and zipped it up. He held Harper's backpack in one hand while slinging his own backpack over his shoulders.

Once he had stopped keeping busy was when the troubled thoughts flooded his mind. He was starting to think this was the universe working against him. It was punishment for almost breaking the bro code. MacGruder was the universe's sign that he needed to stop flirting with his best friend's ex girl.

Zeke looked up just as Harper came from the bathroom. His clothes were too big for her, the pants baggy and looking out of place with her dressy flats, and the T-shirt hanging loosely on her frame. She had balled her dress and sweater up as if she didn't want to look at them. Her red eyes and smeared eye make-up told him that she'd cried more in the bathroom.

His hand took the clothes from her, placing it in the plastic bag and gripping the handle. He didn't mind carrying it for her. The universe couldn't punish him for being polite.

Harper took the hoodie he offered, zipping it up before examining his name stitched on the front. Under normal circumstances she would be jumping for joy. Senior Turkey hoodies were the equivalent of a letterman jacket in those old movies she loved to watch on TV. When the girls wore those it meant they were courtin'.

This wasn't one of those movies, Harper reminded herself. It was just a sticky situation.

She took her bag, and Zeke gently placed a hand against her back to let her know he was right behind her as they left.

The walk to the Russo residence was almost silent. Every so often Zeke would speak, but it was never anything important. He didn't have the words to fix this. His mind was racing with plenty of them, but none of them seemed right. Casual comments about the weather or school work didn't do anything to help.

Theresa noticed something was off when they entered the Waverly Sub Station, but Zeke quickly shook his head at her. It was a signal – 'Don't say anything.' He tried to offer the woman a smile, a 'Don't worry, I've got this,' but he was sure it came out as a nervous grin instead. Harper wasn't paying attention, instead walking through the restaurant so she could go to her room.

She stopped, however, when she realized how quiet she had been to Zeke. He was only trying to help, and she certainly didn't blame him for any of the events which had occurred. It was all clumsiness and rivalries he had no part in. She placed her bag on an empty table, then reached her arms around his neck to pull him into a hug. It was no longer about courage or being cool, but rather comfort and gratefulness.

The motion took Zeke by surprise, but he managed to gently set her dress bag on the table before sliding his arms around her. His hands awkwardly touched her lower back, slipping up higher as he worried he had crossed a line. She buried her face against his neck, tears silently falling onto his skin while the scent of blueberry filled his nose.

He held on tight, once again mentally asking anyone who was reading his mind to not repeat his thoughts to anyone else. Maybe the universe wasn't against him after all. It wouldn't torture him like this.

Zeke wasn't sure how long they stood like that (and he secretly wished it was longer), but as she pulled away he ignored the eyes watching the teenagers closely. He was sure it was an odd sight, but odd sights were a daily occurrence for the customers at the Waverly Sub Station.

"Thank you," she said between sniffles. His hands moved up to gently clasp her hands, giving them a squeeze before he unlinked them. She smiled, her hands wiping at her eyes. She knew she looked like a mess, but he wasn't running away screaming. That was something. "I don't know if it means anything but I think you've earned the A-plus."

He knew it might not be the most appropriate moment, but Zeke let out a laugh. He hadn't expected that comment, and he couldn't hide how happy it made him.

"It means the world," he promised, his voice a bit louder than he meant for it to be. Volume control was not his best ability.

He didn't care, though. In that moment he was standing with the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen in his life, and he had once played Dungeons and Gargoyles with Bibi Rockford. Harper was comfortable enough with him that she wasn't hiding her face or running away even though she'd been crying. His hoodie was too big for her, but Zeke was sure it had never fit anyone more perfectly than it did her.

He shook his head, an action meant to shake away the thoughts but an odd one to actually perform in front of people who couldn't hear his thoughts. Harper noticed this odd behavior, quirking a brow and attempting to catch his eyes. He blushed.

"You…" he began, and while 'are beautiful' or 'are amazing' came to mind, he couldn't say them without feeling guilty. He had to talk to Justin. "…Should probably go shower."

Harper nodded, picking up her backpack and dress bag. "Thanks again, Zeke. I'm really glad we hung out, even if things weren't perfect. It was…very real."

Zeke didn't know what that meant, but he knew it was the perfect word to describe their almost-date. It was the best almost-date he'd ever been on. "It was," he agreed. "I'm gonna go give Justin his gift, then brag because my character is way cooler than his." He stood there awkwardly, adjusting his bag upon his back then pushing his hair around his face.

Should he hug her again? Shake her hand? Wave? Give her a thumbs up and salute?

She mumbled a quiet 'See you' before turning around, so he was left standing there. With a sigh he started toward the spiral staircase. He didn't get very far, though. Standing on the staircase, a smug smile on his face, stood Justin Russo.

"Aw man. How…how long have you been there?" Zeke asked, forcing a happy voice to mask the slight fear he felt.

Justin tried to look stern, but the only emotion he could muster was complete amusement.

"Just long enough to watch you flirt with Harper Finkle."


	8. Interrogation Tactics & Alphabet Soup

The walk up the spiral staircase was a silent one, Zeke gripping tightly onto his backpack straps, his mind racing. What was Justin going to say? Was he going to be mad or supportive? Jealous or apathetic? A mix of all of these things?

Zeke was only sure of one thing: there was no getting out of this situation now.

Justin Russo was only sure of one thing, too. He was going to have fun with this one. It wasn't that he wanted to torture his best friend, but he had to give him a little bit of grief. That's what guys do - they mock, then they hug it out.

Justin thought about holding the conversation in the living room, but instead he continued up the stairs to his room. The last thing he needed was Alex or Max interrupting. As he reached his door, Justin mumbled words under his breath and gave a little wave of his hand as he touched the doorknob.

He used to re-arrange his room whenever he knew Zeke was coming over. His bedroom typically had a lot of magic to it - from lamps that require spells to work to artifacts and knickknacks picked up in the wizard world.

After one too many close calls when he'd forgotten to hide something, Justin figured out a spell to hide any magic from mortals with just a few words. It came in handy, especially since Zeke had been hanging out in his bedroom/science lab more and more these days.

The two entered, Justin pulling a swivel chair out and motioning for Zeke to sit down. Zeke did as commanded, placing his bag next to him but not daring to speak yet. He sat up straight, feet on the floor, hands on his knees to wipe the sweat from his palms.

His best friend, meanwhile, paced back and forth, fingers tapping at his cheek in thought.

"So..." he began, slowly turning to face Zeke. "Harper."

Zeke swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat, slowly nodding his head (as his voice had been trapped under that lump and couldn't break free).

Justin replied with a nod of his own, moving to bend his floor lamp's neck to face Zeke. He flipped the switch, casting a bright light in the face of his best friend.

This wasn't the happy best friend bonding moment Zeke hoped for.

This was an interrogation. The light, only casting upon his face for a moment, had already caused beads of sweat to pour down his brow. He felt jittery, nervous and like he was about to puke. He just wanted Justin to say something. Anything. The silence was worse than potential yelling, and he felt as if the walls were closing in around him.

Zeke couldn't hold it in any longer.

"I'M SORRY!" he shouted quickly, eyes wide as he moved his gaze from the bright light to his best friend's face. "I admit it! I can't help it! I really like her!"

It was then, after he'd said the words out loud, that Zeke felt the pressure in his chest loosen. And there Justin was, smiling. Not in a devious, Jigsaw kind of way, but in an amused and pleased sort of manner. In fact, Zeke was almost sure he heard a quiet laugh over the deafening pounding of his heart. The Russo flipped the light off, then pulled another swivel chair toward Zeke's and took a seat.

"I'm just messing with you, dude," he said, holding up his right hand and speaking the alien equivalent to "I promise."

Zeke slumped down in his chair, hands moving from his knees to his heart, then up to wipe his face. He felt foolish to have been tricked by Justin's antics. It wasn't even Scare People Wednesday!

"But seriously, Zeke, I overheard you guys talking," Justin said when he was sure his friend had caught his breath. "I heard you say that you had a gift for me, so you might want to give that to me _before_ you explain this whole Harper Finkle thing."

Zeke laughed, reaching over to grab his backpack. He pulled out the box, handing it to Justin who quickly opened it up.

Not before noticing the hand-crafted gift tag with his best friend's name scrawled on it, of course.

Justin had received many of those gift tags in his time, a fact he would not bring up to Zeke. Sure, it was common knowledge that Harper harbored an obsession for the eldest Russo, but Justin considered everything with the redhead to be on okay terms. They were friends, and clearly she had moved on. He was more relieved than jealous.

In fact, her moving on was almost as cool as whatever gift could be in the box. _Almost_.

"Oh, awesome!" Justin shouted, holding up his miniature. "It's just like me but tiny and with a better outfit!"

Both teenagers were all grins and excitement, Justin hitting Zeke's shoulder as he ordered his best friend to take a picture of him. He held up the figure next to his face, Zeke using Justin's cell phone to take a photo before handing it back to him.

"So that's why you've been talking to Harper more," Justin said, shaking his head. He was smart enough to notice, but had assumed it was cheer business or some other extracurricular activity he hadn't realized they were both involved in.

After all, they were two of the most involved people he knew, not counting himself, of course.

"It started out that way," Zeke admitted, picking up the box and pulling out his miniature. A smile pulled onto his lips, his finger running over the details before he held it up for Justin to see. "I really like her," he repeated.

Justin reached over to examine Zeke's miniature, almost floored by the paint job Harper had given it. He knew Harper well enough to know exactly how much time and effort she put into a project. This one was important to her.

"And she really likes you, too," Justin reassured him, realizing that - while the teasing was fun - his best friend needed him to fulfill that best friend role right now. Exactly how long Zeke had been harboring these feelings Justin wasn't sure, but it had clearly taken a toll on him.

"You think?"

Zeke felt a spark when he was with Harper, but there was never a point where he knew 100 percent that Harper felt that same spark. Admittedly the not-knowing was kind of exciting for him, each conversation or glance turning into a game of 'did she just feel that, too?'

Justin nodded and, just for giggles, moved the miniatures like they were nodding, too. Zeke had to laugh at that - prop humor was never not funny.

"Trust me. I've known Harper for a long time and she doesn't do stuff like this for just anybody," he insisted as he handed over Zeke's gift.

"But...." Zeke turned away dramatically, as if contemplating his thoughts. Justin was being supportive, but there were so many things unsaid. So many unanswered questions that needed answering.

"I want to ask her out on a date," Zeke explained as he swiveled back around, his hands emphasizing the word 'date.' "And not just a date, but a date-with-the-intention-of-asking-her-to-be-my-girlfriend."

Justin faked a gasp. "Not a DWTIOAHTBMG." The alphabet soup letters came out quickly, and Zeke nodded, not realizing that Justin might be poking fun at his lingo.

"Yeah, one of those," he answered, eyes wide. "Is that okay? I mean, with you? Obviously it'll be okay with Harper if she does like me, but what about you?"

"What about me?" Justin didn't see where he was going with this, nor could he figure out why Zeke was so freaked out in the first place. At first he thought it was just because Zeke was embarrassed about harboring a crush on Harper, but that clearly wasn't it. Now he couldn't follow his friend's train of thought, which felt odd and unfamiliar for the wizard. He was usually on board right from the station.

"It's bro code, J-man," Zeke said, only throwing in the J-man because it sounded more bro-y. "You don't date your best bud's ex gal. I think there's a specific clause that says it's double against the rules if she lives with him, which technically she does, but I haven't looked into it too much."

"Double against the rules?" Justin first questioned the logic of that one, but soon the words 'ex gal' sunk into his brain. When had Justin dated Harper? Sure, Harper told everyone they did but...

Butt. That was it. Cupid. Arrow. Ugh.

"No, Zeke, me and Harper - we never...."

Justin trailed off, realizing that it wasn't just magical heirlooms in his bedroom he had to hide from the teenager next to him, but rather a weird and complicated history of relationships he couldn't explain.

"You never what?"

Justin had to think fast, but he was starting to sound like his dad with all of the short syllables and noises escaping his lips.

"We never had that connection, you know?" Justin offered Zeke a smile, hoping that would explain it enough. "And you guys, you obviously do. I'm not going to stand in the way of that. Consider the bro code abolished."

"Even the double against the rules clause?" Zeke looked hopeful, and who was Justin to squash his dreams?

"Especially that one," Justin answered. He now realized why Zeke had acted so weird, and he felt a bit guilty for making such a show of it. He expected Zeke to look a lot happier now that things had been patched up, but a sullen look still lived on his best friend's face. "What's wrong?"

A moment of seriousness filled the air, Zeke shrugging his shoulders before catching Justin's eye. "She makes me really happy," he began, and Justin, with a smile on his face, interrupted.

"Yeah, you look _so_ happy right now...."

Even Zeke had to laugh at that one.

"Seriously. It doesn't seem fair, for me to be all happy when you're still...you know. How uncool is it for me to potentially-get-a-girlfriend when you're...."

"Single," Justin finished, understanding more and more about how his best friend's mind worked. Zeke had been there since the break-up, and never once did Justin consider that his best friend was giving up on other things just to hang around him.

It almost made him wonder how many other things Zeke had passed on just to be loyal to Justin. Justin stood up, pacing a bit around the room. Now he was feeling guilty.

"Zeke, you have to do what makes you happy," Justin reassured him. "Did I ever ask you if it was okay when I started dating a girl, even though you were single? No. So why should you ask me?"

Zeke had never thought of it that way.

"You're right," he decided, finally allowing a big smile to grow on his face. "I've gotta do my own thing." A pause, a hopeful glance shooting in Justin's direction. "And you're sure it's okay?"

"Zeke, I officially give you permission - which you don't need - to date Harper Finkle. No take backs."

Zeke grinned, standing up and throwing his arms around Justin. "Thank you, thank you, thank you," he said quickly, hands smacking his best friend in the back to signify that it was a manly hug.

Justin did the same before pulling away, a smile resting on his lips.

"Does she know?" he asked, eyebrows raising. "That you like her? Have you shown her, told her, anything?" He was like a proud father, watching his son fall in love for the first time.

Zeke thought about it, eyebrows scrunched and eyes narrowed.

"I don't know," he said honestly. "Once she fell in the cafeteria. I stepped around her. Do you...do you think she noticed?"

Justin highly doubted it, but he didn't let on.

"Maybe," he said, voice reaching a higher pitch. He was awful at lying. "But you need to show her. Harper, she goes big. You need to make sure she knows."

Zeke thought over his words, bringing his hands up to scratch at his messy hair. He had to find a way to show her - something unique to them.

It clicked, just like that. Zeke knew what he had to do, and he had to do it soon, before any more obstacles got in the way.

"So you really _dakka_ Harper?" Justin asked for a final time.

Zeke smiled, flashes of the girl's face flying through his mind as he thought about it.

"I really_ dakka_ Harper," he repeated.

Now he he just had to hope she dakka'd him back.


	9. Of Pilgrims & Peppermints

**A/N**: After "Detention Election" aired I went through previous chapters and changed Zeke's last name to Beekerman now that we received official spelling confirmation.

* * *

Harper Finkle was having a difficult time explaining everything that happened that day to her best friend. It wasn't that Alex Russo was dumb, or that the situation was overly complicated, but that Alex's short attention span was working against the duo.

"You said it was a cherry smoothie?" Alex asked, bag of chips in hand as she tried to focus on Harper's excited ramblings. While Harper paced nervously back and forth in the room, dressed in her plaid pajama pants and a hoodie Alex hadn't seen before, Alex simply stretched out on the bed.

"It was blueberry," Harper replied, her voice a mix of sadness and annoyance. How was she ever going to get to the 'Zeke was super sweet' part of the story if Alex kept getting hung up on the details?

Harper gestured toward the dress. She felt bad leaving it in the bag, so she hung it up to examine the damage.

"Stains like that are totally easy to remove," Alex said, quickly jumping up from the bed. She dropped the chips on the bed, wiping her crumby fingers off on her T-shirt before pulling her wand from her boot. "You just gotta know the right trick."

Harper let out a squeal, rushing to block the dress, arms stretched out and eyes closed tightly in fear. "Don't do it!" she begged, cautiously opening an eye to see if Alex had backed down. The wand was still in hand, but her expression changed from helpful to confused.

"Why not? You worked really hard on that dress, Harper," Alex said, tapping her wand against the palm of her other hand.

"Because Zeke was with me and he knows the dress got ruined so if you -" she motioned to the wand, eyes a bit wider than usual and a hint of easiness in her voice, "- _fix_ it then he'll know you're a wizard!"

Alex rolled her eyes. "Oh yeah, if the dress was fixed the _obvious_ leap would be straight to wizardry. Get real, Harper. We had _actual_ aliens land on Waverly Place and he thought it was an ad campaign. _Actual_ zombies at prom and he thought they were students."

Harper shook her head. While that was a good point – one Harper was honestly surprised Alex had stumbled up on – Harper knew better.

"This is different," she insisted, pointing a warning finger at Alex as she saw her best friend shift with the wand. Alex rolled her eyes one more, slipping the wand back to its secure location. "Zeke is an expert with laundry. There is no fooling him with this one."

Alex had officially backed down, stepping over to Harper to place a hand on her shoulder before pulling her in for a hug. "I'm sorry your dress got ruined. Want me to turn MacGruder into a toad or something?"

Harper shook her head, though she had to laugh at the suggestion. "Nah, he'll get his in time. I'm…I'm okay with how things turned out overall."

Alex pulled back, eyes finally catching the name sewn on the front of the hoodie her best friend wore.

"Is that…he gave you his hoodie?"

Harper was giggling, a hand moving to cover her mouth as she nodded her head.

"You guys are totally meant for each other," Alex replied as she walked across the room to pick up her chips. She flopped back down onto the bed, fingers brushing her dark hair behind her ears. "Seriously, you make me want to vomit so I can tell it's for real."

"Thanks," Harper responded sarcastically, though even her friend's gag reflex couldn't bring her down. Her cheeks were pink and she was hugging the shirt closer. "It smells like his shower soap." She was practically gliding across the room, taking a seat next to Alex.

"Ah, boy smell. I remember it well." Alex offered the chips to Harper who shook her head.

"What did Mason smell like?" she asked instead.

Every so often the two would talk about Alex's former boyfriend. Harper never liked to bring it up, but she found Alex had become more comfortable with it in the past few weeks. It showed an incredible amount of maturity and growth – two things most people doubted Alex was ever capable of expressing, but Harper Finkle was not 'most people.' She knew her best friend had more layers than she liked to show.

"Pilgrims and peppermints," Alex replied simply, a small smile pulling at the corner of her mouth.

Harper raised her eyebrows. "Really?"

Alex let out a loud laugh. It was too easy to trick people sometimes. "No, but that sounds like it could be real, doesn't it?" Harper nodded, causing Alex to laugh more. As her laughter trailed off, Harper took it as a sign to speak.

"I'm sorry things didn't work out for you guys," she said sincerely.

"Me, too," Alex replied, pushing herself off the bed. "It's getting late. I should get to bed if I want to get to school by third period." Before she went up the stairs, Alex turned to glance at her best friend once again. "Things'll work out for you guys. If you need me to do anything…."

"No magic," Harper requested quickly, and Alex nodded.

"No magic," she promised. "But the statement still stands. I can knock some sense into the boy the old-fashioned way, you know."

"Thanks." Harper considered the offer, but shook her head soon after. "I think I've got this on my own this time…but I'll let you know."

* * *

Zeke Beekerman always had a lot of energy. He was a very active person since the day he came bouncing out. That's how his mother phrased it, at least, which kind of grossed him out but he forgave her because that's what family does.

Since that day he attempted to get rid of excess energy by enrolling in dance classes, sports, school clubs, acting lessons and anything else that would drain him so he could sleep at night.

He had a busy day, running around trying to come up with and execute the perfect plan for Harper. He'd enlisted the help of Justin, and by the end of the day he was completely exhausted.

But still he didn't sleep, brain working overtime as he tried to fit each puzzle piece carefully into place. He wanted things to work out right. So far everything had been awkward, and while he loved every minute of it, the awkwardness wasn't what girls wanted.

They wanted fairytale romances – the kind of stuff you see in movies or hear about in Taylor Swift songs. He was pretty sure the curly blonde country star hadn't sung anything about stained dresses and Dungeons and Gargoyle miniatures.

He'd probably like her a lot more if she did, but that really wasn't the point.

The point was that Zeke Beekerman was nervous.

And exhausted.

In fact, Alex Russo looked as tired as he felt as she walked into school the next morning with Justin. The dark-haired girl held a cup of coffee between her hands, eyes half-closed as she grunted in her brothers' direction. He was saying something – she wasn't listening.

"What's with her?" Zeke asked as he approached the duo. He'd gotten to school early and spent the last fifteen minutes pacing the halls, waiting for his support system to arrive.

"She usually doesn't get here this early," Justin said, crossing his arms over his chest as he glared at his sister. "That's if she shows up at all. But I dragged her to school today. I told her she didn't want to miss this."

Alex grunted, eyes narrowed in her brother's direction. "And I told you to record it and put it up on YouTube," she replied, reaching into her jacket's pocket. "See this? It's called a cell phone, and it's got this tiny little camera on it that records things so people don't miss them."

Zeke's eyebrows raised, and Justin began chuckling as he took the item from his sister's hand.

"This is a Pop-Tart," he said, bringing it to his nose to sniff. "Strawberry. It's got these tiny little sprinkles on it that help fill you up so you won't be hungry until lunch time." He paused as he examined it closely. "Also lint. That's disgusting."

He handed it back to Alex, and for a moment the middle Russo considered eating it. Instead she picked the lint off, glancing around for someone to give the gift to.

Max had picked an unfortunate time to enter the building.

"Here, dude," she said, handing him the pastry, completely unaware of the fact that he was already carrying his own Pop-Tart in his other hand.

"Awesome!" Max shouted as he walked toward his locker. "Now I have two. I only need one more."

Justin started to follow, intrigued by his words and convinced this was something he was supposed to stop. That was his job as the oldest, of course. "One more? One more for what?"

Zeke's eyes widened as his best friend walked off. That wasn't part of the plan. Instead he was left with his best friend's sister – or, as an alternate title, his hopefully-future-girlfriend's best friend. He began fidgeting once again. As exhausted as he was, his nerves had caused his energy levels to skyrocket.

Alex, meanwhile, just sipped on her warm beverage before noticing the senior's moves. "Do you gotta go to the bathroom or something?"

He shook his head. "I'm gonna ask Harper out," he blurted out, hands covering his mouth after the words spilled out.

Alex didn't look shocked. She figured that was why she'd been dragged to school so early and why she wasn't allowed to tell her best friend she was leaving. Alex nodded, raising her coffee mug in his direction. "Good luck. And if you hurt her, I'll hurt you."

Zeke didn't answer, instead just swallowing the lump that had formed in his throat. He didn't doubt that Alex Russo could probably kill him. Actually, he was sure whatever punishment she came up with would be worse than death.

He wanted to reassure Alex that he wouldn't hurt Harper. He wouldn't dream of it. But instead he remained silent, sneakers moving back and forth on the tile floor, hands drumming upon his thighs.

Alex glanced toward the entrance, eyes finally opening up as she spotted her best friend. "Hey, here's your chance," she said, looking over to Zeke.

Apparently he'd spotted her at the same time, and instead ran off down the hall in the other direction. Alex was convinced she saw his body fly off in a blur, only leaving a Zeke-shaped cloud of smoke next to her. When she turned back around, there stood Harper.

"Alex? What are you doing here?"

Harper Finkle held Zeke's hoodie in her hands, prepared to give it back and thank him for the loan. She just had to find him first.

"I was just talking to…." Alex trailed off, hand waving through the invisible smoke. "Myself. I…don't even know how I got here. I was sleeping and then the next thing I knew I was…here."

"Fully dressed and holding coffee?" It seemed suspicious, but Harper knew stranger things had happened.

"Weird, I know. Maybe I was sleep-walking? Or…you know, I bet Justin had something to do with this! A spell, or…or a charm or potion or something. Yeah, that sounds realistic." She nodded, pointing in the direction her older brother had gone. "I'm gonna go find him and make him fix it because I've still got a few hours of sleep to get to. And I haven't seen Zeke. Bye!"

"Wait, Alex!" Harper called after her, hand reaching into her pocket to pull out her best friend's cell phone. "Your mom found this in the toaster! She asked me to give it to you!"

Alex was long gone, so Harper just slipped the phone back into her pocket. She'd give it to her later.

Harper was left confused. How did she know she was going to ask about Zeke?

The rest of Alex's ramble had made sense. Justin knew the best way to torture Alex was to make her come to school, and Harper was sure Mr. and Mrs. Russo would be ecstatic if they could find a way to get the rebellious teen into the classroom before lunch.

She shook her head. It was best to not try to figure it out.

Instead she walked to her locker, prepared to keep the hoodie safe until the end of the day. Then she'd hopefully see him at the water fountain.

She got goosebumps just thinking about it.

As she reached her locker, her eyes fell upon a small envelope taped over the lock. She glanced quickly to the left, then to the right, checking to see if she could figure out who had left it there.

Was it even for her? Her locker was right next to Penelope Carmichael's, and Penelope Carmichael received a lot of notes taped to her locker. Maybe this one was misdelivered.

She flipped it over, a tiny green alien head sticker sealing the flap.

Maybe it was for her after all.


	10. Whose Line Is It Anyway?

It was like a scene from a movie, three heads poking around the corner to watch as Harper Finkle slowly opened the envelope left on her locker.

Zeke Beekerman was first, teeth biting his nails in anticipation. He had been careful to leave the envelope as late as possible for fear of someone else stealing it. Taping things on lockers didn't have the safety guarantee that the postal service had, but it would've been really hard to hire a mailman to deliver it to Harper.

Not that he hadn't looked into it.

Justin Russo was next, a grin on his face as he watched Harper. The fair-skinned girl had become like a sister to him – but, you know, the type of sister who had a crush on her brother, so not really a sister at all. Technically she felt like family, and she certainly treated Justin better than his actual sister did most of the time, so Justin wanted to see her happy.

And he wanted his best friend, who couldn't stop moving around next to him, to find in Harper what he had found in Juliet. Maybe it would be easier for them – they didn't have to deal with magic or monsters, just typical teenage drama and angst.

"It's gonna be fine," Justin promised, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder in an effort to calm him down. "Be fearless, be confident and don't worry. We have-" He paused, glancing toward his sister. She looked bored as she texted on her phone.

Wait. That was his phone! He snatched it out of her hand, quickly shoving it into his pocket before turning back to Zeke. "**I** have your back."

Before Zeke could answer he felt a vibration in his pocket, pulling out his own cell phone. "Hey, it's a text from you!" He cleared his throat before reading it out loud. "'This is lame. Why don't you actually go talk to her instead of watching her read mail?' What? Justin, you said that this was a good plan."

Alex Russo needed a shield to protect herself from the daggers her older brother was shooting her. It wasn't that she wasn't happy for Harper, she just felt she had the right to be entertained. If she was going to be woken up to watch, she wanted to see him make a fool of himself.

"Alex sent that," he explained, making a mental note to check if she'd sent any other texts from his number and, if necessary, to plan proper retaliation. "She doesn't understand romantic gestures."

"I just don't understand what's so romantic about a note on a locker," she replied, rolling her eyes before focusing on Zeke. "What's it even say?"

As Harper Finkle opened and read the card, Zeke recited the words he had carefully written. After three rough drafts and the final copy he had managed to memorize them. He'd written them neatly inside a greeting card – they didn't have any "sorry about your dress" cards so he settled for one featuring a cute picture of a puppy chewing a bone.

_ Harper –_

_ I know nothing about women, but I like to think I know a lot about you. Not just the obvious stuff, either. Everyone knows that you wear awesome dresses, but I know that your eyes light up when you think of a new dress idea. Everyone knows that you do well on tests, but I know you have to use the same pencil for each one. It's a standard number two – probably the only thing you own that isn't bright and colorful. The one thing that makes you like everyone else._

_ This is just stuff I've picked up on – my own observations, or overhearing your conversations with other people. I didn't even know these things stuck with me but apparently they did. There's a lot of stuff I don't know, though, like what your favorite color is, what you like to listen to when you're sad or at what age you learned to tie your shoes._

_ I want to know those things. Maybe not specifically those things, but things like that. I want to get to know you better, if you'll let me._

_ Either way, consider this the first replacement greeting card. It'll make a fine dress._

_- Zeke_

"That is so lame," Alex replied, pretending she was only half-paying attention, her eyes focusing on her fingernails. A smirk pulled onto her lips as she slapped Zeke's back. "She'll love it."

Justin nodded. "I like the part about the pencil. That was nice."

Zeke didn't say anything, instead focusing on the girl reading the card. It was probably hard to read – he had written a lot, so his words were quite small to make them all fit.

Harper was squinting as she read the words, excited to see that it was for her and not Penelope after all. His words, though tiny, were sweet. They weren't the most poetic or brilliant thing she'd ever read, but they were for her. Just for her, actually. That made them more beautiful than even the words to the greatest love songs.

She carefully closed the card, slipping it back into the envelope then sliding it in her bag. She'd probably re-read it a few hundred times before she met up with him at the water fountain. She had no idea what she would say, other than 'thank you.' She was glad she had a bit of time to figure it out.

The words out of the way, though still in her thoughts, Harper began fiddling with the combination lock. She had to put the hoodie away and get to class. Hopefully Alex didn't actually go back home – she needed to gush to her best friend so she didn't gush to a random stranger.

As she pulled open the locker, a pile of envelopes and cards slid out, falling to the ground. It was like Max's closet, the contents pouring out in what seemed like a never-ending waterfall. Maybe it wasn't that many, but it had certainly taken her by surprise. So much, in fact, that she had let out a shriek. No one in the hall paid any attention, but she wouldn't care if they did.

She gently placed the hoodie in the now-empty locker, then quickly bent down to pick them up, a smile on her face as she realized what they were. They were all from him. It wasn't long before she noticed another set of hands helping her gather them.

Alex had pushed Zeke forward as soon as she saw the card-version of Niagra Falls. That was kind of cute, she decided, in a messy sort of way. It would be cuter, she told Zeke, if he went and helped her.

"No," he'd insisted, eyes wide. "I haven't prepared for this part!"

"Just wing it," Alex replied as she shoved him in Harper direction. "It's like improv. You've done improv before, right?"

He was an actor - of course he'd done improv.

"What's my motivation?" he'd asked, eyes wide in excitement.

Alex raised her to Zeke was like talking to Max sometimes - nearly impossible but sometimes worth it just for the resulting laughter. "You like her and you want to ask her out. Aaaand, action!"

So there he was, handing her a small pile of cards, a nervous smile pulling onto his lips as he caught her eye.

"I know they're not the same as the ones you had, but it's a start."

Harper grinned as she took the cards from him and placed them next to her. She picked up a few more, completely ignoring the stares she was sure they had now gathered. She was great at gathering cards and stares, but she hadn't yet gathered the words to say to him. Other than the obvious, of course: "Thanks."

A few deep breaths, eyes bright as she kept catching his, only to glance down as she felt her cheeks warm. She needed to be cool. This was no time to spaz out. The words of his letter ran through her mind, and a smile formed as she finally found a proper response.

"I choose a new color each week," she said, reaching out to take another handful of cards from him. "This week I like yellow - canary yellow, specifically. Next week I could be feeling periwinkle or a hunter green."

"I like that you don't limit it to Roy G. Biv," he said honestly. "My favorite's the color of Luke Skywalker's lightsaber."

Harper raised her eyebrows. "Which one?"

Zeke knew there were multiple options, but he hadn't expected her to. He forgot that she'd hung around Justin for years. Heck, she'd probably heard Justin and him debating the positives and negatives of lightsaber combat forms in their spare time. "The green one - the one he built himself."

She simply nodded, glad to have that bit of knowledge. Maybe it wasn't the most important thing she'd learn at school today, but it would certainly be her favorite.

She continued answering his questions, holding up a finger to explain her next choice.

"Billy Joel's 'And So It Goes,'" she said, letting out a quiet sigh as she thought over the track. "That's my sad song. It's not even a total sad song, really, cause there's a lot of hope in there, too. It's beautiful, and it has so many layers that it can really fit to whatever I'm feeling so it's my go-to sad song."

"'So I would choose to be with you - that's if the choice were mine to make,'" he quoted flawlessly, picking up a few cards and passing them to her. "'But you can make decisions, too, and you can have this heart to break.'"

Harper was surprised when he quoted the lyrics, but she tried to hide that surprise. There was nothing attractive about a dropped jaw and a blank expression. Instead she just smiled, nodding her head slowly. The more she found out about Zeke Beekerman, the more she liked him.

The more she liked him, the warmer her cheeks got. She was sure they were completely red by now.

"I was four," she said quickly, hoping to distract from her cheeks. (It didn't work.) "When I learned to tie my shoes."

Harper slowly started putting the cards in her backpack. She had forgotten about needing to get to class. She liked just kneeling on the floor next to a cute boy who apparently liked her.

Still, she knew the bell would ring any minute and pull her from this moment. She needed to be ready for that. "Anymore questions?" she asked, amused by their little 'get to know you' game.

Zeke took this as an opportunity to improvise. He understood the motivation Alex had been talking about.

"Yeah," he said, fingers shuffling the envelopes and cards in his hand nervously before he held them out for her. "Um...do you think you'd want to go out? Like, on a date? With...me. Soon. Dinner, maybe? Or a movie. Whatever you want."

"Yes," she said quickly, and in that moment she allowed a loud giggle to escape. She tried to play it off, of course, but she wasn't that smooth. "I mean....sure. Yeah. That could be...nice."

She then shoved the rest of the cards into her backpack and stood up, brushing off her knees. He followed suit, adjusting the bottom of his polo shirt, not bothering to hide the grin on his face. She'd said yes! And it was an excited yes, so he took that as a good sign. There was just one thing left.

He reached into his pocket, taking out a card he had noticed scattered on the ground while helping her clean up. His instinct had told him to keep it separate, to hand it over when the time was right. Now felt right.

"You forgot this one," he said, gently taking Harper's wrist in his hand, handing her the card with the other. He allowed their fingers to linger for a moment, laughing quietly as he watched her cheeks reach a new shade.

The card was cheesy, bright red, small and rectangular-shaped with a picture of kissing frogs on it. It was a Valentine's Day card, the type children exchange at school parties. It read "How 'bout a smooch, Valentine?"

As Harper's eyes scanned the words, Zeke reached out to push a strand of hair behind her ear. That's how they did it in the movies, and Zeke was glad he hadn't poked her ear or bumped into her gummy bear earrings.

That's when Harper looked up, eyes wide. She expected him to look nervous, but he seemed surprisingly cool. He had, after all, managed to orchestrate this whole surprise for her and, as far as she could tell, pull it off flawlessly. She, meanwhile, had giggled a little too loudly and felt like a goofball.

She loved it, of course.

His eyes locked hers, and while he tried to not bounce around or make a fool of himself, he couldn't hide the excitement in his eyes. They were trying to read hers, as if he was sending her telepathic-signals asking for permission.

And so she nodded, maybe not because she got the signals, but because she knew what he wanted and she wanted it, too. His fingers moved from behind her ear, gently cupping her chin as he tilted his head down. His lips met hers, and while it was brief, it was the best kiss Harper had ever received.

Technically it was the only kiss Harper had ever received, but that wasn't the point.

Harper's eyes remained closed after he'd pulled away - she only opened them when she heard the bell ring. Her lips remained slightly parted, Harper's brain trying to make sense of what had just happened.

"I should...get to class," she whispered, still a bit shocked from what had just occurred. There was no possible way she could focus on lessons today - that ship had sailed. She'd have to get the notes from someone else.

"Ditto."

All of the energy Zeke had managed to suppress to appear 'cool' had finally surfaced, the senior now rocking back and forth in his sneakers, hands tapping an unfamiliar beat against his pockets. He managed to give her a small wave, then turned to leave.

It was roughly 3 seconds before he turned back around, finger raised as if he'd just thought of a great idea.

"Hey, Harper? I have to work after school today, but...do you think it'd be all right if I walked you home?"

She thought it over for a moment as she pushed her locker door closed. "Yeah," she said confidently. "I'd like that."

He nodded, waving once again and rushing to find Justin before the late bell rang.

Harper, meanwhile, pulled out her phone, frantically typing a message to her best friend.

_Zeke just kissed me!_

It was seconds later that Harper felt a vibration coming from her pocket. She forgot she still had Alex's phone. All she could do was laugh, hand covering her face as she rushed toward class. She didn't hear the comments being made about her unscheduled public display of affection, but if she had?

She wouldn't have cared. For the first time in weeks she knew exactly where things stood: she liked Zeke, Zeke liked her and she had a backpack full of greeting cards to prove it. What other girl could say that?


	11. The Woo Process

Alex approached Harper with a grin on her face, but Harper Finkle barely noticed her friend's appearance in a class neither of them were sure she was actually in. It had, after all, been a while since Alex had appeared in that room.

"The whole school is buzzing about you and Zeke," Alex said excitedly. It was rare for Alex to get excited about anything that wasn't illegal or frowned upon, especially before lunch time. Still, public displays of affection might have been against Tribeca Prep rules, so maybe that qualified as "frowned upon" enough for Alex to be okay with being excited about it.

Or maybe Alex was just excited that her best friend had found a guy she really liked. This must have been how Harper felt when Alex was going out with Riley or Dean or Mason, only amplified by like a thousand since Harper tended to take an emotion and run with it.

Alex's thoughts were interrupted when Harper finally snapped out of her daydream and acknowledged her best friend's statement.

"Wait, how does everyone already know? It _just_ happened. I haven't even told you yet!" Harper paused, pulling Alex's cell phone from her pocket and handing it to her. She knew, however, she should have waited. Phones weren't allowed in class and now Alex was going to spend the whole time texting. Alex raised her eyebrows.

"Toaster," Harper explained. "Now, how did you know?"

"I was watching," she answered, and upon realizing how creepy that sounded, she let out a loud laugh. This gathered the attention of her classmates but Alex just rolled her eyes. "It's why Justin dragged me to school. He knew all of this was happening and he was all, 'You don't wanna miss this' and I was all, 'Then record it 'cause I'm sleeping' and he was all 'That's a Pop-Tart.'"

Harper knew this was one of those times where she shouldn't ask, so instead she focused on the important thing - how everyone else knew. "Okay, so you were watching, but what about everyone else? I know word travels fast but c'mon." Harper refused to believe anyone cared about her or Zeke enough to talk about them.

"I don't know, Harper," Alex responded, eyes focused on her phone as she typed up a text message. "Justin and Zeke probably told everyone. You know, to clear up those rumors about Zeke."

"What rumors?"

Alex's eyes went wide as she glanced up to see the innocence in her best friend's face. There were always rumors that Zeke was different than the other boys, or that he was a bit too close to Justin. She was pretty sure everyone had heard them, though Alex never believed them. Did she really want to try to explain them to Harper?

"Uh, well, you know - that Zeke's...never kissed a girl," Alex said. That'll do. "Yeah, that's the rumor."

Harper thought about it for a moment, chin rested in her palm. She just couldn't wipe the the dreamy look from her face. "Oh," she responded, a quiet sigh escaping her lips. "I'd never heard that, though."

This did not surprise Alex, not only because she'd made it up, but because Harper had a habit of not hearing the negative rumors. "That's 'cause you're not tuned into the gossip station, Harper," Alex explained knowingly. "It's on FM radio, and you're...wait, what's the other one?"

"You mean AM?" Harper asked. It was an easy answer, but Harper was still impressed by her ability to answer - she was sure her brain had turned to mush after the hallway incident. Maybe she'd get through school today after all.

"No, no, that's another way of saying 'morning.'" Alex waved her hand. "Anyway, it's not important. The important thing is that you and Zeke are totally the hot topic right now, and that means people aren't paying attention to me so I can totally get away with stuff. Good job!" With that she gave her best friend a thumbs up and stood up, ready to walk out of class.

Unfortunately that was when the teacher decided to enter.

"Sit down, Ms. Russo," she said, and Alex sank back into her seat.

"Guess not," Harper whispered, patting her friend on the back. "Better luck next time."

* * *

Zeke Beekerman was so eager to walk Harper home that he altered his Wednesday routine. Instead of talking to Justin, checking in with his favorite librarian or listening to a funny anecdote from the guy who stocked the vending machine in the teacher's lounge, Zeke went straight to his locker and down to the water fountain near Harper's locker. After taking a drink he decided to lean against the locker next to hers, waiting for her to arrive.

All day he had gotten questions about what happened between him and Harper. He heard whispers when he walked by, and received random high fives from people he'd never even spoken to. He wasn't sure he wanted to know what those people had heard. He didn't really talk much about the actual event, unsure of what the situation had really meant.

He hadn't asked Harper to be his girlfriend. They technically weren't "dating" - she had just _agreed_ to a date. That was the first step, though. He realized he sort of skipped a step by kissing her right then and there, but Zeke wasn't one to follow the steps.

Well, he was one to follow the steps in dance class, but romance was not a dance class.

Actually, he'd heard a quote once that compared marriage to a dance. It was sweet, something about choosing your partner and also having balance. He liked that quote, but chose to not focus on it right now. Knowing his nerves - because yes, he had them - he would blurt it out and freak Harper Finkle out. He wasn't thinking about marriage. He just wanted to have dinner with her.

"You're in my way."

Zeke's thoughts were interrupted by a female voice. He glanced over to see Penelope Carmichael tapping her foot impatiently, her books held close to her chest. "That's _my _locker," she said, emphasizing her ownership over the property.

Zeke didn't have to heart to tell her that technically she didn't own the locker, she was just allowed to use it. It was still Tribeca Prep property. That was the second thing they taught you in Locker Refurbish Club.

"Sorry," Zeke said, sliding over in front of Harper's locker. He watched as the girl picked off taped notes from the front of her locker, and Zeke had to laugh. What kind of person taped notes to a locker? Oh wait, he had done that.

"Oh, here," he said, noticing a piece of paper on the ground. "I think you dropped one." The girl took the paper just as Harper Finkle approached her locker.

She was full of energy and nerves. She'd made a quick dash to the bathroom to check her hair and make-up, feeling girlier than ever. She didn't want to look bad - he might change his mind about wanting to walk her home.

Zeke's eyes widened as he saw her, and his hands quickly raised in front of his chest.

"She dropped it," he insisted loudly, then pointed toward Penelope. "I didn't give that to her, I swear."

Harper's eyebrows raised. "Zeke," she said, hand reaching out to grab his. "It's OK. I didn't think you did. Calm down."

Zeke let out a sigh of relief as he slid to the next locker over, allowing Harper to work her combination lock. "I just didn't want you to think I was giving notes to other girls, that's all. I haven't given a girl - other than you, of course - a note since I made Lacey Morrison a Valentine in fifth grade."

Harper giggled as she took out his hoodie and put away the books she wouldn't need for the night. "What happened with that?"

Zeke shouldn't have brought it up, he decided, embarrassment washing over him. He wasn't going to go into the whole story. "She broke my heart," he answered instead. "Literally. There was tearing and dirt involved. It was...tragic. Really."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Harper said honestly. Sure, he was just talking about a little kid crush, but Harper understood how much it hurt. "If it helps, I promise there will be no tearing or dirt."

"It helps a lot, actually!" Zeke didn't feel the need to ask Harper if she was ready to go. They both just seemed to start walking toward the door. He wasn't sure if he should try to hold her hand or offer to carry her bag or anything like that, so instead he shoved his hands into his pocket, racking his brain for things to talk about. His eyes landed on her earrings - or earring, rather.

"Hey, what happened to the other one?" He pointed to the spot where the green gummy bear used to dangle. Yes, he had memorized the colors.

Harper reached up, touching her bare ear. "Alex got hungry during class," she answered, frowning a bit. "I thought she was gonna bite my ear off for a second!"

"Well, I like the look. I don't know if I told you that earlier, but I meant to. You look nice." Zeke's hand came from his pocket, smacking himself - a bit harder than he meant to - in the forehead. "That's such a lame compliment. 'I like looking at you.'"

Harper wasn't really sure if he was talking to her or to himself. He was acting as nervous as she felt earlier. It was nice to see that someone who pulled a flawless romantic stunt still had worries and goofy moments, especially since she felt that way most of the time.

"I like looking at you, too," she said loudly. She held out her hand, her eyes catching his. Then she smiled, and that was all Zeke needed to feel comfortable again. He took her hand in his, fingers lacing with hers.

"So, you make a lot of cool outfits all the time. Do you ever, you know, have an idea and it just doesn't work out? 'Cause I've had that. With robots. I mean, people always think giving them free will is a great idea but it's not. Not that I've built free-thinking robots. I know better than that." Zeke paused, realizing he was talking faster than usual and was probably not making too much sense.

Harper, however, understood it. Not-so-much the robot parts, but the failed ideas. Later she would analyze this conversation and freak out thinking he was using this as a metaphor relating to their relationship and how it wouldn't work out, but her worries would fade when Justin explains how Zeke prefers similes. (Alex, meanwhile, would not understand what any of that meant, but she'd be around for any support session if it meant she got ice cream.)

"I was going to make a dress out of matches," Harper began, "but I realized soon after that if I bumped up against a wall the whole thing would go up in flames and I really didn't want to chance it."

"That's the problem with those strike anywhere matches," Zeke said, nodding his head in agreement. "Would've been a neat dress, though. You know...before the flames. I guess the flames would be kind of neat, too, but then, if you survived being engulfed in fire, you'd get the name 'Fireproof Finkle' and that would...well, that'd actually be kind of cool." He paused, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. "Don't try it, though, not even for the cool nickname. I don't want to see you in the burn unit."

That was probably the most romantic thing Zeke Beekerman had ever said to a girl.

Rather than turn all gooey over it, Harper tried to continue thinking of failed dress designs.

"Made a dress out of umbrellas once," she told him proudly.

"Please tell me the bottom part was an open umbrella and your headband was-"

"One of those mini ones, yeah."

They were both so excited about this design, nodding happily, huge smiles on their faces. Anyone paying attention to them would be jealous of how they bounced back and forth in conversation, flawlessly connecting with one another.

"So what was the problem?" Zeke asked.

"It was raining the day I decided to wear it," Harper answered. When Zeke still looked confused, Harper explained further. "I...there was some guy. He didn't have an umbrella. Totally tried to use my dress _as_ an umbrella."

"Umbrella upskirt?" Zeke questioned, and Harper nodded.

"Yeah. Not a fan! I had shorts on underneath, thank goodness. It was still really embarrassing and..." She trailed off, partially because she realized they'd reached the sub shop and partially because she was embarrassed by the story she'd just told. "I haven't told anyone that story before. I mean, outside of Alex."

For once Zeke Beekerman didn't feel the need to say anything. He _wanted_ to say that he was glad she felt comfortable enough with him to tell that story. He _wanted_ to say that he wouldn't tell anyone, that her secret was safe with him. He _wanted_ to say that she should feel free to tell him any story, because the sound of her voice calmed his nerves and the brightness of her smile warmed his soul.

But he didn't _need_ to say it because he was pretty sure she knew. There was no possible way she was looking at him with those bright, innocent eyes and not feeling what he was feeling.

"Are you gonna kiss me now?" Harper hadn't meant to ask it, but the words sort of popped out and it was too late to take it back.

Zeke shook his head, but began explaining himself before the disappointment could settle on Harper's face.

"I want to take you out on a proper date, Harper Finkle. We can't go smoochin' all willy-nilly! You are too amazing for that. I want to woo you right." He raised her hand to his lips, placing a gentle kiss to the back of her hand. "You're a classy lady and I need to respect that."

Harper pulled her hand from his grasp, placing her fingertips on his cheek. "You're so cute when you say things like 'woo' and 'willy-nilly,'" she whispered, and with a bout of courage she brought her lips to his.

There was only one thing Zeke could say when he broke their kiss, eyes a bit wide and smile forming on his lips. "I have to go to work." He the frowned. "I'm sorry. But thank you. Can I call you later?" His brain was once again working in fragments, with too many thoughts pushing to get out at once, none of them fully escaping in a proper manner.

"You better," she answered. "I'm a classy lady. You gotta woo me right." She paused, realizing his hoodie was still in her hand. She'd never gotten a chance to return it. "Oh, here. I washed it. We're getting the rest dry-cleaned."

She had tried to hand him the hoodie, but he just shook his head, pushing her hand away. "Keep it," he insisted. "It looks better on you. Consider that part of the 'woo process.'" And with that (and a wave), Zeke turned around on Waverly Place and walked off.

He was an expert on the woo process, Harper decided, hugging the hoodie close to her as she watched him leave. Lacey Morrison didn't know what she was missing out on.


	12. Fact: At Least One Beatle Was a Werewolf

**A/N:** I know updates have been spaced out with nothing for long periods of time so my apologies, faithful Zarper fans. Things should be rolling along more smoothly. Thanks for the kind words, crazy reviewers. This is for you and I hope you dig it.

* * *

A pile of organized chaos sat atop Harper Finkle's favorite table in the sub shop, with the redhaired girl and her best friend Alex Russo sorting through envelopes and cards. Every so often Harper would let out an "aww!" and show the card to Alex, who would feign interest before going back to sugar-snacking.

"Alex, look at this one," Harper requested, though it was more of a demand, sliding a card over before picking up another. The cards were all pretty random, some with messages from Zeke and others with old messages from whoever gave Zeke the card.

Alex was not one to typically take orders - however, she decided to humor her friend, picking up the card and flipping it open. "Heard about the clog incident - next time try square-dancing. Get well soon. Love, Uncle Charlie."

Alex was speechless. Why was that worthy of an aww from her best friend? It was just an old "sorry you got hurt, chump!" card. People used to send them to Justin all the time (and, by the time Alex got done with them, "sorry you got hurt, chump!" was exactly what they said).

"I think it was from when he did 'Peter Pan,'" Harper said, eyes wide as she grabbed the card back from her friend. She hugged it close to her chest as she reflected upon that experience. "He was so good in that role."

Alex was pretty sure Harper was remembering it wrong, but she found it rather cute - in a vomit on the table sort of way - that Harper seemed so enthused by the boy's extracurricular activities.

"Look at you, already pretending he's good at stuff when he's not," Alex said proudly, pushing her best friend gently on her shoulder. She loved relationships based on lies. "You guys are gonna be together for-"

"Don't say it!" Harper quickly interrupted, practically jumping across the table to put her hand over Alex's mouth. Alex's eyes grew wide as she pushed Harper's hand away. She couldn't even ask 'why not' before Harper continued. "You'll jinx it. Just...don't say it."

"Speaking of jinxes." Alex rolled her eyes, head nodding toward the sub shop where Justin entered. He was carrying his backpack and proudly wearing his Alien Language League T-shirt. For a moment Harper was confused, but then her brain - slightly delayed from the shock of the almost terrible words Alex had said - finally caught up with her.

"Are you implying that he's a jinx or...where are you going with that one?"

Alex shook her head. "I don't know, Harper. It was a transition. It felt like something I should say." And with that she stood up, leaving just as Justin walked over to Harper.

It was very convenient, Harper realized, how often they seemed to leave rooms just as others were coming in. It happened at her house, too, but she was sure it was for different reasons.

Justin took a seat where Alex had been, reaching into his backpack as Harper spoke to him.

"I forgot you all had a meeting today," she said, fingers nervously picking up a card from Zeke's 13th birthday. It meant a lot that he had given something like this up. She knew this. "Did you just meet without Zeke? I mean, there are only so many members. Can you really afford to do that?"

Justin's expression clearly showed that he thought the idea of meeting without Zeke was preposterous.

"No, of course not. When he has to work we hang out at the store. Of course his boss comes over sometimes so we have to pretend to look at stuff and then usually we end up buying something." Justin looked oddly excited as he spoke to Harper. It was a friendly conversation, and it felt nice for him to not have Harper's eyes looking him up and down like a piece of meat. "We usually try to make it something related to the club. We bought tinfoil once, like to make the little hats. Not that we think they work or anything, but we like to appreciate the 'culture.'"

Harper just nodded, listening intently to his story, as if waiting and wishing for another mention of Zeke. She was a woman obsessed. She knew this, too. Luckily she got her wish.

"He asked me to give you this, by the way," Justin said, sliding an envelope through the mess on the table. It was only after she picked it up that Justin gathered his belongings to leave.

"Hey, Justin?" Harper had started to open the envelope, but paused as a thought crossed through her mind.

"Yeah, Harper?"

"We're good, right? Like, me with Zeke - this isn't weird for you?" Sometimes Harper still lived in that delusional world where Justin Russo was madly in love with her. He wasn't. She knew this. However, she still wanted to hear that things were good between them.

Justin nodded. "Of course. We've had a very _weird_, non-existent relationship. You dating Zeke is probably the most normal things have ever been."

Harper placed a hand to her heart, his words touching her. Maybe her brain had filtered out the word non-existent, but either way his sentiments were sweet.

"Thanks, Justin."

With that out of the way he left, and Harper focused once again on the envelope in her hands. She knew she should probably start doing her homework soon, but Zeke Beekerman had given her better reading material than the assignment she had for English.

_I know this is completely hokey, and that I just saw you a few hours ago, but I thought I'd write you a note to say that I was thinking about you. I almost couldn't concentrate on the meeting and when a lady asked me where trash bags were I almost told her aisle four instead of aisle two. Hopefully it's still OK if I call you later. I guess if it's not you could always just not answer. I hope you answer, though._

_Zeke_

_P.S. I've included a coupon for hand soap, not 'cause I think you need to wash your hands but because it's a really good deal and they have some scents that reminds me of you. Is that weird? If it is just pretend I didn't write that part._

She hugged the note to her chest, a dreamy expression taking over her face. She had been waiting for years to find a boy who mixed up aisles for her and gave her coupons and smelled things that reminded him of her. She'd watched all of her loved ones with their loved ones and been jealous of their quirky relationships.

Now Harper had her own boy with his own quirks.

* * *

Harper hadn't realized how long she'd been sitting at that table in the sub shop, her eyes scanning over happy images and precious words. She'd started separating them into piles based on what they were. There was absolutely no way she could make a dress out of these, but she had other artistic plans in mind.

Zeke Beekerman was the type of boy who got the gears turning in her brain and the creative juices flowing. Now the trick was to figure out how to balance these new project ideas with spending time with him, spending time with the Russos, all of her extracurriculars, school assignments and Alex's overdue assignments.

Recently Alex had asked that she stopped doing the assignments on time. It would look suspicious. She had to give her best friend credit for noticing that.

Harper also had to factor in so many minutes for unscheduled misuse of magic, most likely by Alex. Somehow she got roped into these situations, even when she preferred not being involved.

It was clear that Harper, for the first time in her life, would have very little time to herself. It was a comforting feeling, knowing there were so many people and things to fall back on. She felt safe with her second family.

She was only reminded of how much she enjoyed it there when Jerry came in from the street, turning the sign to "closed" as he did. Had she really been sitting there that long? Harper glanced around - no customers in sight, but that really didn't tell her much. She then glanced at her watch - yep, she had been sitting there that long.

Theresa rushed to meet Jerry in the middle of the sub shop, frantically whispering then looking back to Harper, only to return to whispering. Harper glanced around her, then behind her, as if trying to figure out what they were going on about. What had she done? Was she in some sort of trouble?

She gulped as they walked over.

"Is everything OK?" Harper asked, sitting up straight in her chair.

"We're sorry we forgot your birthday," Theresa said quickly, and Jerry nodded next to her. "If we had known we would have gotten you a cake and thrown you a party. In fact, we're going to do that. This weekend! You can invite Zeke. I heard things are going well between you two."

Harper was unable to interrupt, as Jerry quickly joined the conversation.

"And I'll fix whatever you want for dinner, as long as it's something-" he paused, head whipping to look at his wife. "Wait, Zeke? 'Going well'?" And then his attention was back to Harper. "Are you dating him? You're not allowed to date. No daughter of mine is going to have anything to do with boys, not after what happened to Alex."

"Oh, Jerry! Zeke's a good kid and they're so cute together! We can't stop her from growing up. Besides, I'm pretty sure Zeke's not a werewolf."

Jerry's eyes bugged out. "'Pretty sure'? I don't know, have you seen his hair? He's got crazy hair."

Before Theresa could argue - she was pretty sure Zeke couldn't even grow facial hair, so he couldn't be a werewolf - Harper slid her chair back, pushing herself up.

"Mr. Russo, Zeke's not a werewolf," she insisted, her hands clasped in front of her stomach as she nervously confronted her second father. "And we are going out on a date, if that's OK with you, because I really like him. But I really appreciate you calling me your daughter." She then turned to Theresa, a wave of relief washing over her. Standing up to Jerry was the hard part. Theresa's was just a misunderstanding. "And Mrs. Russo, it's not my birthday. I...why did you think it was my birthday?"

As if on cue Jerry, Theresa and Harper all looked down at the mess of cards.

"Oh." Harper laughed to herself. She loved finding herself in wacky situations such as this one. "No, these aren't...these are from Zeke. It's a long story."

"I don't think I like you having long stories about Zeke, Harper. I think -"

Jerry was unable to finish his sentence, as Theresa had smacked his shoulder, signaling him to shut up.

"Well, I got you a gift anyway," Theresa said, pulling a gift bag from behind her back. "I bought it a while ago, I just didn't have a daughter to give it to." Harper's eyebrows raised. "You'll see."

And Harper did see, pulling a beautiful dark blue dress from the bag. It wasn't too formal, but it wasn't the sort of dress Harper would wear to school. This was a date dress. Harper felt her eyes well up, her hand raising to touch her heart. "Mrs. Russo..."

"I know you usually make your own outfits, but I thought this was really nice and Alex would never wear anything like it and -"

Theresa stopped her rambling as Harper came over and hugged her. "Thank you," Harper whispered, and Theresa ran her fingers through Harper's long red hair.

"You're welcome."

"Hey, I want a hug! I got you a gift, too!" It was why Jerry had just rushed into the sub shop. He pulled a gift card to her fabric store from his pocket, holding it out to her. She took the card, ready to thank him when Theresa interrupted.

"A gift card is not a real gift, Jerry."

"Yes it is. The word 'gift' is right there in the name." He stuck his tongue out at his wife, acting more like a five year old than his true age, then held out his arms. Harper obliged, muttering a quiet 'thank you' as she hugged him.

When she pulled back she held her gifts, eyes wet and grin unable to wipe from her face.

"So, when's the big date?" Harper's cheeks flushed as she felt Theresa's curious stare and Jerry's disapproving glare.

"I'm not sure," Harper admitted. "He's supposed to call soon, though."

"Well, whenever it is, he needs to pick you up here like a gentleman. And I want to speak to him! Check him out, make sure he's good enough for you." Jerry held his head up high - he had to make sure everyone knew who was boss around here.

It was his wife. He knew that, and she made that clear.

"Oh, Jerry! You know him. He's around all the time."

The Russo parents were no longer focused on Harper, turning to walk away from the table. Harper gathered her cards and gifts, listening as they playfully bickered back and forth.

"That was when we met him as Justin's best friend! This is a different situation. We need to make sure he's good."

"Whatever you say, honey."

"Hey, even though it's not her birthday, can we still have cake?"

Harper giggled. If she knew being a Russo meant getting presents on not-your-birthday and having a dad who actually cared about who his daughter was seeing, Harper would have traded in her last name forever ago.

She glanced at the dress one last time before she put it back in the bag. She knew exactly what accessories to pair with it, and once again her creative juices were flowing.


	13. Amok Time

It felt like forever, waiting for her first date with Zeke.

Technically Harper didn't know what "forever" felt like, and she was often teaching the importance of patience to Alex when the wizard wanted a quick and easy fix, but dang it, Harper was tired of waiting!

When Zeke had called her after work, just as he said he was going to, the two had discussed a number of things. The most important, of course, had come after Zeke cleared his throat and stuttered a few minutes before finally asking when they should officially go out.

After going back and forth suggesting days and times (they both had a lot of various activities and clubs in their lives, and Harper briefly considered making color-coded schedules so they could more accurately plan dates in the future), the two had settled on a Saturday day-date.

A "dayte," Alex said through a mouthful of pizza when Harper told her at dinner. Nobody laughed, even after Alex tried to explain that it was funny because it was the same word but not really. ("You guys just don't understand comedy.")

Harper had managed to push all of her worries to the side until Saturday morning. That was when everything she had ever read in the relationship advice section of teen magazines came flooding back into her brain.

"Is it bad that we're going on a date in the afternoon? It's a lunch date. They say it's not a 'real' date if it's just lunch, don't they? That's like 'just friends' stuff, isn't it?"

Alex grunted at Harper's freakout. It was before noon. Alex was not all there. In fact, she couldn't even remember coming down to the basement, but apparently she had. She had also, at some point, crawled into Harper's bed, burrowing under the covers and cuddling against Harper's pillow. It smelled like waterfalls.

"Alex, are you even listening? I need help here!" Harper had rollers in her hair as she nervously applied lip gloss, only to wipe it off and choose a different shade. That one was trashy - she didn't want to come off as some streetwalker!

"Harper," Alex mumbled, slowly pushing herself into an almost-upright position. "This is the second time in less than a week that I've been awake before noon because of your relationship with Zeke. Yes, I said 'relationship' because it is. You've kissed. He gave you cards. You've walked home holding hands the past couple of days and he looks at you the same way he looks at robots and his VHS copies of 'Star Wars.'"

"He likes them better because the remastered ones changed things," Harper mumbled to herself, knowing Alex did not care about Zeke's movie habits.

And Alex just grumbled, resuming her comfortable position and quickly falling back asleep. She was done being helpful.

It was, surprisingly, enough to get Harper through. She just needed to hear that things were going to be all right. Now that she felt calmer, she could finish getting ready.

Zeke felt...sweaty.

It was really the only adjective the senior could think of if, for some reason, someone had asked how he was feeling at that exact moment. He supposed "nervous" was a better choice, but "sweaty" felt more mysterious. If someone texted him saying, "Hey, how are you?" and he replied with "sweaty" it could be for a number of reasons.

Maybe he had just returned from his after-breakfast jog and hadn't yet showered.

Maybe the air conditioner was broken and his mom hadn't been able to fix it yet.

Maybe he'd eaten something spicy.

None of those, however, were the reason for Zeke Beekerman's sweatiness. At least not this time.

It was just nerves, especially after he'd knocked on the door to the Russo loft, only to be greeted by Mr. and Mrs. Russo.

"I'm here to pick up Harper," he said, clearing his throat and giving his most innocent and hopeful smile. Theresa smiled back, but Jerry just narrowed his eyes.

"Why don't you have a seat," he said, completely monotone. Theresa jumped into the conversation quickly, trying to ease the young man's nerves.

"Make yourself comfortable," she corrected. Her voice was much more pleasant than Jerry's robotics. "I'll let Harper know you're here."

Maybe it wasn't the best idea to leave Jerry alone with Zeke. It was, after all, what caused him to feel sweaty. It was just his forehead, though. He kept checking to make sure he wasn't sweating through his light blue button up shirt, and his striped dark blue tie was great for gently dabbing his forehead.

When Harper and Theresa came into the living room, they found Jerry grilling Zeke. Not literally, of course, though Harper knew anything was possible with this family.

"So, Zack..."

Zeke wasn't sure if he should correct Mr. Russo. No one called him Zack anymore. Did Mr. Russo even know that was his name? Or was he just messing with him like TV dads always did to make their daughter's dates more nervous? It was working, if that's what it was.

"It's Zeke."

Zeke didn't say those words. Harper had spoken up as she entered the living room, exchanging a smile with Theresa before walking over to the couch.

"It's the same thing," Jerry insisted.

Zeke quickly stood up as Harper approached, holding out a small bouquet of daisies. He gave her a nervous grin, only to feel Jerry's hand upon his shoulder. He didn't even have time to tell Harper she looked beautiful, though Zeke did let his eyes linger upon her long red curls before turning to face Mr. Russo.

"I'm not done asking you questions yet."

So far he had only asked him his name and what he does for a living. They were very normal questions, so when Jerry next asked him "How do you feel about the moon?" Zeke was kind of surprised.

"I..."

Harper, who had given the flowers to Theresa to put in a vase, brought her hand to her forehead. How embarrassing. Jerry had clearly landed back on the werewolf thing, and would probably base his opinion of Zeke on his answer. In theory, of course, as long as Zeke didn't say "I love howling at it" they should be good.

"I'm a pretty big fan, I guess," Zeke said, though he knew he needed to expand upon his answer. Clearly the moon was really important to Mr. Russo, and Zeke had to make a good impression. "I don't think it's actually made out of cheese, but I love the concept of it. I mean, I love cheese, and it brought that really great cracker commercial which, in my opinion, was a very effective marketing campaign."

"The one with the crackers sliding around on the moon? I love those!" Jerry looked excited as he shouted happily in response, and for the first time Zeke felt comfortable. Who knew bonding over cheese could make things less awkward? Zeke made a mental note to save that one for future situations.

"Mr. Russo?" Harper had circled the couch, coming up behind her pseudo-father and tapping him on the shoulder nervously. Certainly he had finished questioning Zeke and would approve of the duo's date. "Is it all right if we go now? I assume you have nothing else to ask him." Her eyes were wide as she tried to hint that she really wanted to leave, and Jerry finally gave in.

"Fine, you can take Harper out," he said as he turned to Zeke. "But have her home by...well, it's like noon now so...just don't stay out late and next time don't bring flowers. Bring something the whole family can enjoy. Like a cake!"

"Yes sir," Zeke said, and he stuck his hand out. Jerry gladly accepted it, giving it a firm shake.

"I'm serious about the cake."

Harper just covered her face with one hand, reaching for Zeke's hand and dragging him toward the door. She called out her 'see you laters!' as she went, refusing to look back.

"I told you he's a good kid," Theresa said knowingly, a smile pulling upon her lips as she watched the door close behind them.

Jerry had to agree, though he would have agreed more if Zeke had been smart enough to bring cake without being told.

Zeke Beekerman was a gentleman.

When they got to the restaurant, he held open the door for her. He linked arms with her as they walked to the table. He planned on pulling out her chair for her, but unfortunately they were seated at a booth. Instead he dusted off the seat with a napkin before letting her know it was clear to sit down. This earned strange looks from the other patrons of the fancy-but-not-bank-breaking restaurant, but Zeke didn't care.

In fact, he didn't think their looks were strange. He just knew they were looking, and he assumed it was because he had the most beautiful date in the place.

Harper blushed when he told her this, giggling quietly to herself as she tried to contain her excitement.

"Oh, Zeke," she said with another laugh, her hand resting upon her chest as she grinned. "You're just saying that."

"No, no, I mean it," he insisted, taking a sip of water before continuing. "I mean, there are plenty of other girls here but are any of them wearing handmade D20 earrings? I don't think so. And that, Harper Finkle, is beautiful."

Harper blushed again, her hands raising to touch the earrings she had made to go along with the dress from Mrs. Russo. She knew how into roleplaying games Zeke was, and loved the shape of the 20-sided die, so finding dice to match the dress had seemed fitting for their first date. She'd wrapped the dice in wire, and while they weren't totally original (she had seen some online, though she liked to believe hers were made better), she was still excited about the project.

In fact, Zeke inspired her to consider making a line of 'geek chic' outfits and accessories. It was amazing how simple it was to include things he liked into her wardrobe. She'd be making robot-themed outfits in no time to sell to all of the girlfriends of self-proclaimed geeks everywhere.

Alex, however, had shot this idea down. ("What girlfriends? Save your time and effort, Harper. Make the collection imaginary to go with their imaginary girlfriends, you know what I'm saying?...I'm saying they don't have girlfriends, Harper, keep up!"

Harper took off an earring, excitedly showing Zeke the piece of jewelry.

"And look, the dice come out if you need them for something," she told him, popping the die out and holding it up happily. "Like, let's say we're out somewhere, and you need to make a skill check but, for whatever reason, you don't have your dice bag with you."

Zeke gasped loudly, covering his mouth quickly. He couldn't imagine such a thing ever happening, and Harper seemed to be on the same page.

"I know, that's just crazy-talk! But, should the situation come up, I've got your back." She paused, wide eyes innocently looking up at him. Suddenly nervous, she whispered her words, as if they were only meant for him and not the older couple at the table nearby or the waiter who brought them fresh rolls. "I mean, if you keep me around."

Zeke reached across the table, his hand encompassing Harper's smaller hand and giving it a gentle squeeze. "You just made a Dungeons and Gargoyles reference and offered to let me use your D20. I'm pretty sure I'd be an idiot to not keep you around."

The two enjoyed a moment of silence, simply gazing in each other's eyes, unable to stop smiling. The moment was only interrupted by Zeke's own brain, convinced he had the most wonderful idea in the world.

"You should totally play sometime! You'd be so good at it."

While Harper wanted to share Zeke's hobbies with him, just as he had expressed interest in hers, she wasn't so sure she understood this one enough to join in.

"I don't know..."

"It's just like playing pretend," he insisted, his thumb gently rubbing her hand as he spoke. It wasn't an act he was doing on purpose, but rather one that just felt natural and comforting. It was comforting, Harper thought, glancing down quickly and smiling as she realized how nice and normal it felt. "It's like when you were a kid. It's using your imagination, but without the dolls and stuff. Didn't you and Alex play with dolls?"

Harper nodded, her free hand raising to brush a curl behind her ear as she spoke. "Well, of course, but it's not like our dolls went on these epic adventures. I was always more into the fashion aspect of them. I'd make them cute little outfits and decorate the house. And Alex...well, her dolls were always on the run from the cops after robbing a bank or burning down a car dealership."

Harper and Zeke locked eyes for a moment, sharing a look of amusement. That was Alex Russo, all right.

"You know, I usually try to repress the stories like that, 'cause I'm afraid I'm going to have to retell them one day while under oath in the court of law."

"A very logical fear," Zeke agreed. He'd heard enough stories about Alex's antics and witnessed enough pranks around school to know that she'd probably make headlines for something illegal one day.

Rather than dwell on her best friend's schemes and her own childhood anecdotes - she'd hate to start rambling about her dolls always had parents who fought like her own parents did - she decided to shift the topic back to Zeke.

"Why'd you ask about dolls, anyway? Did you have a doll, Zeke?" Harper grinned, shaking his hand gently back and forth as she teased him. Zeke, however, turned pink.

"Spock wasn't a doll, he was an action figure." Rather than even try to change the subject, Zeke accepted that he played with his Spock toy more than any others and he wasn't embarrassed to share stories of his great adventures. "The girl who lived across the hall from me, Mindy, used to always want to pair her Barbie up with my Spock. Like, romantically. Her Barbie was cute or whatever, if you're into that weirdly proportionate type, but it didn't work out. She didn't understand the Vulcan mating process. I mean, you understand pon farr, right?"

Harper didn't. She knew enough about nerd culture to know he was referring to Star Trek, but that was it. She didn't want to admit that, but before she could mutter anything more than an "I..." Zeke continued to talk.

"I'm sorry. It's probably really inappropriate to talk about Vulcan mating rituals on a first date." Zeke started to pull his hand away, ready to cover his face in shame. How could he be so foolish? He was clearly moving way too fast.

Harper, however, gave his hand a gentle tug to keep his grip, and when his eyes caught hers, she gave him a reassuring smile.

"Maybe save it for the second date?" she suggested.

Zeke would be lying if he said he wasn't a shellshocked for a moment. She was being way cooler about his dork blunder than he was, and it made him like her more, which he didn't even think was possible.

"You'd want to go on a second date?"

"Of course," Harper answered. "Wouldn't you?"

But before Zeke could answer, Harper's cell phone rang and she was forced to end the record-breaking handholding session they were currently engaging in. Whoever was on the other end of the line had better be having an emergency of some sort, Harper thought to herself as she dug in her purse, because that was the only way she wasn't going to unleash her wrath upon them for interrupting what was, so far, a perfect date.


	14. Gotta Catch 'Em All!

Harper Finkle didn't need to glance at her phone's blinking screen to know who was calling her. It was the same person who always called her at the most inconvenient times: Alex Russo. Once Harper found herself trying to work a hot glue gun while trying to answer the phone, only to glue the dress she was wearing to the dress she was making.

Sure, it inspired the "double-dress" she worked on for a few weeks following the incident, but it was messy and inconvenient, especially considering Alex had been upstairs the whole time. She was simply calling Harper to tell her to come upstairs to watch TV with her.

"It's just Alex," Harper said to Zeke, pushing 'ignore' before turning her attention to the date. "Now, where were we?" She stretched her hand across the table, fingers dancing against the tablecloth in some sort of strange finger-seduction move. He, in turn, went to grasp the inviting hand, only to be interrupted once more by her phone.

"Maybe you should get that," Zeke said. He could tell Harper was frustrated and embarrassed, yet he was nothing but understanding. Sometimes you had to be there for your best friends, even when you wanted to be with someone else. "It could be an emergency."

Harper rolled her eyes - not so much at Zeke, but at the thought of it being an emergency. "An emergency? I doubt it. An 'emergency' in Alex's world is running out of pickles or losing her place in a magazine." There was a bit of sarcasm and annoyance in Harper's voice, but the words were said with love, maybe even a hint of jealousy. It would be amazing to stay so worry-free, Harper had decided long ago.

The ignore button tempted her once more, so Harper pushed it, only to decide to take it a step further by turning off her phone entirely.

She cleared her throat, shook off any of the negative feelings, and tossed a smile in Zeke's direction. "Now..." she said, her fingers lacing with his. "I believe we were discussing the possibility of a second date?"

A nervous laugh escaped Zeke's mouth. Harper Finkle was clearly a take-charge kind of girl around him, and Zeke knew it would be difficult to keep up with her.

He was willing to take the challenge, though.

"Right," he answered. "It definitely seems like-"

_Bzz, bzz, bzz._

Harper's phone was now vibrating on the table, knocking into Harper's glass of water and sending a cellular quake through the couple's hands.

"Didn't you just turn that off?" Zeke asked, eyebrows raised as Harper quickly grasped the phone.

She meant to simply answer it, but somehow managed to put it on speaker.

"Alex, sweetie...what do you want?"

"Harper, I need your help!" Alex's voice seemed urgent, and there was clearly a matched annoyance in her tone. "Why didn't you answer in the first place? I know you hit the reject button, and I know you turned off your phone. You know I hate using magic to get ahold of you." Who was she kidding? She loved using magic to get ahold of her, but not when she was in a rush and trying to do things the mortal way.

At the use of the m-word Harper froze, letting out a loud and nervous laugh that echoed throughout the suddenlysilent restaurant. She was sure even the piano player in the corner stopped playing – maybe he was between songs, but she doubted it.

"Magic! Oh, Alex, you're so silly. Always using your imagination. Now...what do you need help with? I'm kind of on my date...with Zeke...and you're on speakerphone...and he's listening..." Harper knew she wasn't being subtle. Alex should understand what she was saying without her actually saying 'Cool it with the m-world!'

"Sorry, Harper. You know I wouldn't have called unless it was an absolute emergency." That was a lie. "Max got into a bit of...trouble. Nothing Justin can't fix - because frankly I'm too exhausted to bother trying - but he's not answering his phone and I don't know where he is. I even tried what I tried on you but of course he's got it blocked."

"So you decided to call me?" Harper leaned close into the phone, throwing a nervous glance at Zeke before eyeing the phone suspiciously. She tried to whisper, her cheeks flushed. "Alex, c'mon. You know I don't keep up with his schedule anymore. Those days are over. I'm trying to get rid of the past. Look toward the future, and the future includes cute boys who clog, not your brother."

While Harper spoke, Zeke Beekerman kept his attention on the napkin in front of him. He'd started to fold it into a bird, more concerned with his art than eavesdropping on Harper's very public conversation. It wasn't his business, and clearly she didn't want him to know, so he managed to tune out her words and focus on the origami project in front of him.

He knew what she was talking about, of course. He knew dating his best friend's ex would be awkward, but - if he had been listening - he would have believed that she truly was looking toward the future and no longer concerned with Justin's schedule.

"Oh, will you stop freaking out?" Alex requested, her commanding voice drawing Zeke's attention away from the half-finished fowl. "I know you don't stalk him anymore but Zeke is basically his secretary. Is secretary a girl thing? What's the word for a dude secretary? Well, whatever the word is, Zeke's that. I thought he might know where he is."

The thinly veiled insults were lost on Zeke, who seemed excited by the mention. He liked being helpful, especially if his helping could benefit the Russos AND impress his date.

"Justin's at the comic book store next to the hobby shop!" Zeke grinned, leaning over the table slightly as he spoke into the phone. The duo basically lived there. "They're doing a huge Pokemon trade-off today. We'd been talking about it all month. He probably has his phone off so he can concentrate and interact with his fellow Pokemasters."

Harper seemed surprised by Justin's location. This was the sort of thing the best friends always did together. Why was Zeke with her instead of Justin?

"He's such a dork," Alex complained, letting out a loud sigh as she realized her two options: fix the situation herself or let Max remain stuck to the ceiling until Justin got home. The latter was tempting. "All right, thanks for the help. I guess I'll just figure something out."

"Is there anything we can do?" Zeke wasn't sure what kind of problem Max had, but he never turned down an opportunity to display his chivalrous personality. Besides, if he was going to be hanging around the Russos even more than before, he had to make sure to impress everyone. That included the youngest.

"Nah, it'll be fine. We replaced the sharp objects with pillows so even if he falls he'll be mostly OK."

Leave it to Alex to end the call with that. She hung up, and Harper's phone powered down to its original off position. While Zeke was a bit confused, Harper hadn't even processed what Alex had said. She was still hung up on his choice to be with her instead of a room full of nerds.

"Zeke." Harper gained his attention, her hazel eyes locking his. He had the brightest eyes she'd ever stared into - it made it difficult to concentrate at times, but she kept it together. "You gave up a Pokemon meet-up thing to go out on a date with me?" Eloquent, Finkle.

Zeke found the question odd. He would give up almost anything to go out on a date with her, but he refrained from saying as such. Instead he kept it sweet and simple: "Of course."

Harper felt like she could jump across the table and kiss him right there. Instead, however, she played it cool. This was, after all, the date he was using to 'woo' her. She couldn't let him know she was completely reeled in already.

Besides, the older couple a few tables over would probably stare, and lunch date kisses _would_ be too much PDA for the red-haired girl to be comfortable with.

Her eyes, still locked to his, lit up brightly as a thought flashed into her mind.

"You made Justin take your DS with him, didn't you?"

She'd seen him attached to the lime green video game console and couldn't imagine him fully giving up this opportunity. (She'd also made a mental note to make him a rad alien-themed carrying case, but that wasn't important at the moment.)

Zeke's cheeks turned pink. He wasn't embarrassed by his love for video games. No, instead he was embarrassed at how well Harper Finkle apparently knew him. Clearly he'd never be able to get away with anything.

"Well," he began sheepishly, his fingers forming the beak of his napkin bird, "I really need a Rayquaza."

Just as she suspected. He handed her the napkin creature, fingertips brushing against hers as she took the item.

"It's not quite as crafty as something you could do," Zeke admitted, shrugging his shoulders casually, "but I thought you'd like it."

Harper examined the bird's imperfections - part of his tail was limp from a drop of water that had soaked the napkin. That made it all the better.

"I love it. It's perfect."

* * *

"He's perfect," Harper thought to herself as she walked toward Waverly Place, her fingers laced with Zeke's. He was telling a story about his family.

It was strange how much Harper didn't know about Zeke. She had learned Justin's blood type and social security number years ago, but Zeke's life story was a mystery. It was hard to believe he'd been so close to her for the past few years yet she hadn't gotten to know more than the basics.

She was looking forward to that journey more than anything, her eyes dreamily locked upon his face as he spoke.

Unfortunately, Harper had failed to realize he would want to get to know her, too.

"What are your parents like?"

Harper froze, her mind desperately searching for the most accurate description of the family which had raised her. She loved them, of course, but they were kind of embarrassing. The longer she was away from them the more she realized how different she was from them.

"They're different," she answered. "You know how you're supposed to learn what to do from your parents?" Zeke nodded. "I learned what to not do. I love them, but...their relationship is so strange to me. Like, you look at the Russos, right? And they're totally in love. Even when they bicker about sandwich meats or fabric softeners you can still tell that they're totally in love. I mean, he gave up mag-"

She froze, unable to think of word which started with 'mag' so she could continue her sentence. Instead she started coughing, pretending that the word had simply slipped out. It wasn't a related thought - not at all. It was a hacking sound. Zeke's hand freed itself from hers, only to find a new resting place on the her back.

"He gave up a lot for her, and she did the same," she answered after her fake coughing fit (which almost turned into a real fit) was over. "I don't know if my parents ever really went through that."

Zeke didn't really understand what girls thought about, so this was a nice sneak peek into the mind of one. Girls apparently wanted guys who would give up anything for them.

"So that's the kind of guy you're after? Someone who sacrifices everything to be with you?" He didn't mean to sound so serious - he was only curious, after all, and trying to not put himself in the context of the question.

Harper, however, shook her head. It proved, once again, that Zeke didn't understand.

"Just someone willing," she said.

They stopped in front of the sub shop, not worried about blocking any customers' way because, let's face it, not many people were entering the sub shop. There were better places to eat.

Harper knew this was the part of the date where they had to end things. The awkward "will they or won't they" kiss followed by her rushing upstairs to reveal every detail to her best friend. (Zeke, of course, would take the journey to the comic book store to be the envy of all of the nerds - he'd had a date! With a girl! Plus he had to talk to Justin and find out how the trade went, but even Zeke had to admit the first part was more exciting.)

"I had a great time," Harper told him as she slipped her arm around his body, pulling him in for a hug.

With his face engulfed in her hair, Zeke took a deep breath, allowing the scent to wash over him. He'd hold tightly onto that memory and all of the warmth associated with it.

"Thanks for going out with me," he said as he pulled back.

"Thanks for giving up your Justin time to go out with me," Harper countered, and a sheepish expression took over her features. "And...I'm sorry again about Alex and the phone calls. And Mr. Russo's questioning. And basically everything that wasn't perfect."

Zeke shook his head, unsure of _why_ exactly she was apologizing. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary to Zeke, but he hadn't been on many dates.

"No one spilled anything on either of us," he told her, his hands gently touching her cheeks as his gaze locked onto her eyes. "You didn't leave out of boredom. I only burped once in front of you-" ("Alex does it all the time," Harper mumbled quietly to herself. "It's really no big deal.") "I'm pretty sure that means it was a successful date."

"Oh, Zeke Beekerman," Harper whispered, her voice almost a giggle escaping from her glossed lips. "I do believe I have been successfully wooed."

Zeke was breathless - the last one escaped in a silent laugh at her words - but he slowly brought his lips to hers anyway. When had he become such a stud, he wondered to himself. Was this the sort of kiss she would write in her journal about? Would she describe the way the wind rushed through their hair, or how her small fingers grasped the fabric of his shirt? Was she timing it in her head, or had all brain-clocks malfunctioned as a spark flew from her lips to his? (He was, after all, pretty sure that was how brain-clocks worked.) Were her knees as weak as his felt?

He wanted to ask her, but knew there was no way he was studly enough to pull off such a flawless execution of sweetness. He settled for a simple "Wow" as they broke the kiss. And then the only thing he could think popped out:

"If I ask you to be my girlfriend will you say yes?"

Harper laughed. Loudly.

It wasn't a nervous laugh, or an uncomfortable laugh, or even a laugh of amusement. It was just a laugh, one she needed to stop. Her hands raised to her mouth, eyes wide and bright as she nodded.

"Really? Oh, good. Good."

There was a moment of silence, Zeke glancing around happily as Harper's eyebrows raised. Wasn't he going to ask her?

When Zeke noticed Harper's expression his eyes grew wide. "Oh! Oh, right. I should probably actually...ask. My bad." He had turned into his hyper, jumpy self, body rocking back and forth as he gripped her hands. "Harper Finkle...will you let me be your boyfriend? Or, in other words, will you be my girlfriend? Thus making it official and boyfriendly-girlfriendly?"

There was the laugh again, Harper nodding instead of giving an actual answer, as her breath was too busy sounding giggles throughout New York.

And so Zeke jumped into the air, still gripping Harper's hands, a smile on his face.

"Awesome. Is it OK if I go tell everyone now?" Harper nodded again. "And I'll call you later, OK?" Another nod. How Zeke managed to go from chilled out stud to hyperactive child Harper had no idea, but she loved that she had somehow managed to flip that switch in him. "Awesome."

He bent down, placing a kiss on her cheek and saying his goodbye before making a quick exit. He sprinted down Waverly Place, pointing in Harper's direction as he excitedly told people "She's my girlfriend!" Harper waved at the people who stared at her, her cheeks flushed and her smile taking over her face.

"That's my boyfriend," she whispered to herself as he disappeared around the corner. "That's my boyfriend."


End file.
